A World Without Batman
by The Crobatman
Summary: When Terry gets stuck in the past of an alternate Gotham, things get a little... complicated.  Read and Review please!   Note: best understood if you've seen: Teen Titans, Batman: TAS, and Batman Beyond Return of the Joker.
1. Part 1: Welcome To Our World

**(Author's note:  
>Okay, I am SO sorry for not working on this fic like I should be, things have been hell around my place right now... lol. SO. You can expect chapters 13-20 soon! I'm almost finished with 13.<br>Another thing: At the advice of my Super-Schway fans, I decided to go through the entire (FREAKING) story and add line Breaks. ^.^.  
>So, reread if you want, you'll be less confused. <strong>

**Another thing, for chapters 13-20, any reviews with questions, suggestions, or just ones that catch my attention, will be featured at the end of that entry in the 'Mailbag' section!**

**OH and if this is the first time you're reading this... I think you'll like what you're gonna read.)**

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><p><strong>A WORLD WITHOUT BATMAN<strong>

_**"We impose meaning on the chaos of our lives. We create form, morality,**_

_**order. It's a choice we have to make every second of every minute of**_

_**every day."**_

_** -Bruce Wayne, Batman**_

**(Since I'm not getting as many reviews as I'd like to, I'm gonna start asking for them)**

_Part 1_

Two people stood in a dark alleyway, filled with garbage and the distinct smell of smoke. One of them wore a black bodysuit with a red bat embedded on the chest as well as two pointed 'ears' on top of a black mask that completely covered his face. His name was Terry McGinnis, though in the suit he was known as Batman.

The other figure was a woman, likely in her early twenties and blonde with her hair in two long pigtails. She was fairly tall and wore a bodysuit as well, hers was split into four sections, colored Black and Red like a checkerboard. She wore thigh- high black boots with heels as well as elbow-length black gloves. Her eyes were covered with a mask, covering any obvious features. The playful grin across her face contrasted greatly with Batman's gritted teeth.

Batman stood defensively, holding a Batarang up with his left hand, ready to throw it if he had to, the woman just held her hands on her hips completely oblivious to the fact that he could throw that Batarang and cut through her like butter. Though she did know it.

"Why so serious big man? Never been here before?" She said, that silly grin plastered along her face as she came up close and examined the Batman.

"No, and I'd like to know where I am…" Said Terry, irritated at this girl's disregard for his personal space.

"Gotham City buddy, hey! Do these things work?" She stated, examining the thin wings that came out of the Batsuit's back. Batman pulled his wings together and faced the unknown woman.

"That's impossible…"  
>"That don't mean it ain't true! So, uh… Ya got a name shady guy?" She asked, looking at the bat on Terry's chest.<p>

He was silent for a moment, thinking hard, no one had ever asked his name. Everyone knew who Batman was.

"I'm Batman."

There was a sudden change in the woman's face, going from curiosity to outright surprise.

"Batman? You mean like, THE Batman?"

"Uh… Yes?"

With no other words, the girl grabbed Terry's black gloved hand and began shooting through the city like an acrobat, jumping from building to building with lightning speed. Batman could hardly keep up, he was tempted to ask her where the heck she was taking him, but he was also curious as to how such an old city could be mistaken for Gotham, so he stayed quiet.

Batman and the strange girl finally stopped in front of a small shack on the outskirts of the city. Terry tried to catch his breath while his companion pressed her left index finger to the glass of the door.

"By the way, the name's Harley, Harley Quinn." Said she, in a much less silly tone than before, almost serious. Her name struck a bell for Batman, he had heard about Harley Quinn, the Joker's girlfriend from his mentor and the first Batman, Bruce Wayne. This immediately put him on the defensive. The glass on the door Harley had her hand on glowed light blue for a split second, and she was once again dragging Terry inside. As the two flew through a very long spiraling hallway, going down, it hit the boy… Harley Quinn has been dead for decades! How is this possible?

The Dark Knight pulled his hand away from Harley's and drew his Batarang again. "Look, I don't know who you are, but the Harley Quinn I know of is long dead…"

Batman stated. Harley raised her eyebrows and looked at her hand, "Gee Bats, I don't look dead to me!"

Terry couldn't wrap his head around this, Harley Quinn has been dead for at least 30 years if not more… How is it this girl could think she's the Joker's nutty girlfriend? Unless… Batman held his ear, and spoke.

"Wayne?"

"Who ya talkin' to B-man?" said Harley in her high pitched sing-song voice.

"Quiet!" Growled Terry as he tried to contact his mentor.  
>"… Yes sir…" She squeaked submissively.<p>

"Answer old man!"

There was no answer in the batcave, in fact; all Terry could hear was static.

"Harley… What's the date?" Batman said, grabbing Harley by the cuff of her shirt.

September 21st, 2011." Harley spat out nervously.

Terry's eyes widened as a million different thoughts and explanations raced through his mind. He then realized he was glaring at Harley right in the face and she looked faint, Terry sometimes forgot how intimidating he looked in the suit.

"Sorry…"

Said the Batman, letting the girl loose and backing away a few steps, Harley brushed herself off and blew her bangs out of her face.

"Ya could warn somebody before freakin' 'em out like that!"

"I said I was sorry didn't I?"

"Sorry ain't gonna cut it B-man, you're gonna hafta do me a favor later."  
>"Whatever… I have one more question…" Batman stated, much more calmly.<p>

"What is it bats?"

"Where is Bruce Wayne?"

Harley's face fell, "Ya mean you're not him?"

Batman shook his head slowly.

"He kicked the bucket a long time ago." Harley said sadly, looking down.

Terry couldn't believe his ears, she had to be lying! Bruce couldn't be dead!

"Please tell me you're joking!"

"She's not." A voice came from behind Terry in the dark room he and Harley stood in.

"And don't ever say the word 'Joke' around her."

The voice's owner made himself known, stepping into a dim light, and revealing himself to be a young man, barely older than Terry, his jet-black hair was messy and sharp. A mask similar to Harley's, though with sharper eyes, covered his eyes. He wore a black suit nearly identical to Terry's, though instead of the red bat, there was a blue hawk on his chest.

"Nice to meet you Terry, I assume you know who I am."

Terry's eyes widened.

"Nightwing."

_**[I went through and edited this chapter, I personally think this is a much better version than how it was before, but I'll let you be the judge of that! Read and Review Please!]**_


	2. Part 2: Joke's on Terry

_**Part 2**_

"You don't belong here McGinnis…" Nightwing said with a frown. Terry was shocked "How do you know who I am?"

"Futuristic technology… Not to mention a link to the Justice League of your world."

"My world?"

"His world?" Asked Harley, whom Terry had forgotten was standing there.

Nightwing scowled under his mask, turning and motioning for Harley and Batman to follow him.

"I'll explain in the Batcave."  
>"Ooh! Can I push the button Nightie?" Harley said excitedly as they made their way toward an elevator in the hall they stood in.<p>

"Fine."  
>"Yay!"<p>

Harley, Batman, and Nightwing all piled into the elevator, Harley pressed a black button hidden in the left wall and they shot straight down into the ground. Terry could feel how fast they were going, it felt as if he was in his Batmobile, except he was going straight down and he couldn't feel his stomach.

"This trip takes nearly ten minutes… Nightwing asked Batman, who replied saying, "Well let's start with how I got here."

Nightwing explained to Terry that earlier that day, he was fighting several of the Joker's henchmen, including the Riddler. The Riddler had a Chronoton Detonator that he planned to use on the area of the city around Arkham Asylum, wherein there were several people who could pose a threat to his plans. Nightwing intervened the time-altering explosion with a weapon he intended to use to send the detonator to another world, this however, did not happen. As the CD was going to explode, Nightwing's dimensional portal activated, and somehow it homed in on something in the Batsuit and dragged Terry to this world.

"I think I get it… So why isn't clown girl at my throat? I thought she hated Batman."

"Hey! I'm no clown! It's called a harlequin!" Harley snapped, sticking her tongue out at Nightwing.

"That… Is going to take time to explain…"

Batman, Nightwing, and Harley finally arrived in the Batcave, Terry walked in to a familiar sight, the cave wasn't much different from the one back in his time and world. Nightwing then began to explain why Harley had defected to their side to Batman, "About a year ago, Tim Drake was kidnapped by the Joker… I assume you know him." Nightwing started.  
>"Yeah… And if your world is anything like mine, he was tortured into insanity, became a younger version of the Joker, and was ordered to shoot Bruce." Terry said, walking with Nightwing and Harley through the dimly lit cave.<p>

"Right… In your dimension, Tim shot the Joker instead of Batman… Here, that wasn't the case."

"You mean?" Terry said, crestfallen.

There was a sudden opening of a mechanical door on a ledge less than a few feet from them.

"Yeah… I did it… I killed Bruce Wayne… I killed Batman…"

Said a young boy from the ledge, he made his way down the stairs to the three older people. Terry could tell this was Tim Drake. He wore a black mask almost identical to Dick's, as well as a black suit with a cape, with just a Red 'R' on the left side of his chest.

"Terry McGinnis, this is Tim Drake…" Nightwing said.

"Black Robin."

Said Tim coldly, walking toward a computer screen embedded in the cave wall.

"Aw Timmy baby…" Harley said sweetly and grabbed the boy's hand, then gave him a hug, which was accepted gratefully by Tim, to Batman's surprise.

Nightwing and Batman walked away as Harley consoled Tim for his mistake, he could tell Tim wasn't exactly easy on himself for his mistake.

"Tim didn't take it well did he?" Terry asked Dick.

"No… He didn't. Tim blames himself for that night; he claims he should have been stronger than the Joker's torture. No one blames him… the Joker is a monster. Anyway, as soon as Tim was rehabilitated, he contacted me and told me about Bruce's death… I didn't take it well either."

Nightwing turned on his own computer screen and began typing something.

Terry grimaced.

"So… How does Harley fit into all of this?"

Nightwing sighed and continued to speak.

"When Bruce was killed, Joker rose to power, conquering half the world in less than a year. Taking control of any business he could get his hands on… Drugs, Crime bosses, even Wayne Enterprises."

"The Joker is running Wayne Enterprises?" Terry blurted out in irritation.

"Yeah, he runs everything now. Eventually, Joker had become crazier than he already was, and in a fit of rage almost took a knife to Harley over there."

"And?"

"She was rescued by Black Robin… And lost any emotion she had for the clown. Most of the time now, she spends with Tim, consoling him for that night, taking care of him."

"That makes sense I suppose…"

"Sense? That's not exactly a word I'd put in the same sentence as Harley Quinn… She's not evil or in love with a madman anymore. But she's still a little insane."

With that, Nightwing clicked something on the screen in front of him, activating a series of codes that flew across the screen before beginning to take a shape. Nightwing's eyes widened as he realized what the code was making… A giant toothed grin.

"Oh no… He's found us." Dick jumped from his seat and ran, Terry following close behind him.

"HE'S FOUND US! HARLEY! TIM! WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!"

* * *

><p>Black Robin and Harley quickly got up and followed Batman and Nightwing toward the elevator. They hear cackling laughter above them and around them through speakers in the walls. The entire structure began to crumble around them, there was nearly no time. As they reached the elevator out of the collapsing batcave, it fell down and was crushed.<p>

On impulse, both Terry and Dick lifted their Arms and revealed red bat wings and blue hawk wings from their suits. Harley holding onto Batman and Tim onto Nightwing, they both took off, flying with the rockets in the heels of their shoes.

Dodging falling debris, Batman and Nightwing found their way out of the elevator shaft, and coming out into the dark night city, landed on a nearby rooftop.

"How could jerko find us?" Harley said with a huff as Batman set her down next to him.

"What happened to the Batcave Dick?" Yelled a girl's voice from behind the group. They all turned to see two women standing behind them, both wearing black bodysuits.

"Well?" Said the shorter of the two, who looked absolutely fuming. She stepped closer, and Terry could see that this was Batgirl, likely Barbara Gordon. Her Batsuit was nearly identical to the one she wore in his dimension, though with a few differences. Specifically that she had a silver bat on her chest rather than the yellow one, and that her cowl had sharper ears and covered more of her face.

"Don't take that tone with me! As if I had anything to do with this!" Nightwing shouted at Batgirl.

"Then answer my question-?" Barbara suddenly stopped talking as she noticed the boy in the Batsuit behind Nightwing.

"And who are you?" She asked, sneering a little behind her full lips and approaching Terry.

"Terry McGinnis, Batman." He said, taking a step away from her advance on him.

Batgirl continued to step toward him angrily.

"Batman? Yeah RIGHT. If you're Batman, then who am I?"

"Barbara Gordon, Batgirl."

"How did you know that?"

A small hand pulled Batgirl's shoulder away from Terry.

"Calm down Barb, he's got you." Said a sultry voice, coming from the taller of the two girls.

"If you know who she is, then you'd better know who I am Terry…" Said she, also revealing herself. She wore a black leather catsuit, which was skintight and appeared very flexible it was low-cut and exposed quite a bit of her neck, leaving little to the imagination. She also wore a cowl with short 'ears' on the top.

"Catwoman… Selina Kyle." Said Terry, Catwoman smiled and stepped around Batman, examining him.

"Oh Batgirl, he's the real deal… Bruce showed me this suit a long time ago, he was making it for when he was old and couldn't move as well… He never got to use it, so I bet this guy is who our old Batman chose as a successor." Catwoman deduced and Terry couldn't help but smile at how she had pegged him.

"You're mostly right Selina." Said Nightwing, "Except that our Bruce didn't live long enough to choose him, but His did."

Catwoman and Batgirl looked at Terry expectantly.

"You're not from around here are you Batboy?" Catwoman asked, shifting her weight to her thigh.

Terry explained to Catwoman and Batgirl his situation, and the group agreed that there was no possible way their meeting was coincidence. Selina lead them back to her own little place so they could regroup and figure out how to take down the Joker.

* * *

><p>"Alright people, masks come off in this neighborhood… You know the drill, ladies into the bathroom, men change anywhere else." Said Selina, pulling her cowl off and revealing her brunette self, which was a surprise to Terry because the Selina Kyle from his dimension was blonde. Nightwing went to a drawer in her front room, taking out two pairs of jeans and throwing one to Black Robin.<p>

"We come here often enough to need to change into our secret identities…"

Terry made no movement to take off his cowl as Dick and Tim changed into Jeans and T-shirts, he just sat on a couch bent over and adjusting his cowl's communicator.

"What are you doing?" Tim asked, sitting next to the still-costumed Terry.

"Trying to contact someone..."

"… You're trying to contact Bruce... Aren't you?" Tim frowned and looked at Terry, who looked back sympathetically.

"Yeah… But I don't think my radio can reach across dimensions and time."

Tim folded his hands and looked down, "Terry right? If you ever get back to where you belong… Can you tell Bruce that…"

Terry's compassionate side took over and he patted Tim on the back.

"Tim, what happened that night wasn't your fault, the Joker tortured you to the point where even Bruce would have cracked."

The younger looked up at Terry, who looked off.

"You have no idea how proud Bruce was of you Tim, you were probably his favorite Robin."  
>"He said that?"<p>

"Well, he said you never quit or died on him. Bruce told me once that of all three Robins he worked with over the years, you showed the most promise."

"What about Dick?"

Terry looked up, leaning on his hands backwards.

"Let's see if I can quote him… 'Dick saw being Robin as a thrill, that's probably why he quit. Jason saw being Robin as a game, that's likely what got him killed. But I have to hand it to Tim, he really wanted to be the world's greatest detective."

Tim smiled slightly, and Terry returned that smile.

_**[Edited, improved, probably still needs work! All Reviews appreciated!]**_


	3. Part 3:  A Visit to the Clown Girl

**Part 3**

In the front room of Selina's home, the double identities of the Gotham knights sat planning their next move. Dick Grayson, Barbara Gordon, Tim Drake, Harleen Quinzel, and Selina Kyle. The only one still in costume was Batman, who refused to remove his mask in case Bruce found a way to contact him.

"Really Terry, we all know who you are, and it's near impossible to communicate across dimensions, take the cowl off so we know who to look for if you go missing!" Said Barbara. Terry scowled, and again tried to contact Bruce… To no avail, he pulled his mask off and revealed his face to the group. All of their eyes widened, and Harley got up and sat closer to him.

"Well hell-o cute stuff!" She grinned, embracing his arm. Terry rolled his eyes, and looked at the group.

"What?"  
>"You… You look just like him." Said Barbara, getting up and dusting a picture of a much younger Bruce Wayne on the wall, even Terry was a little shocked at the picture, he had seen photos of younger Bruce Wayne in his dimension, but this world's Bruce was nearly identical to himself… Granted with a lamer haircut, but he guessed that was the time period.<p>

"Yeah… Weird…"

Harley was still on his shoulder, "That's not a bad thing y'know, got a girl back home hottie?" She smirked, Terry nodded.

"That's one reason why I have to get back… Soon."  
>"We can worry about getting Harleen's new love interest home later, right now we need to focus on taking our city back…" Said Dick, leaning forward in his chair.<p>

"Dick, we've tried to defeat him hundreds of times, and your plans NEVER work!" Barbara declared, waving him off.

Tim folded his arms and frowned, "Hate to say it Dick… But Barbara's right, why would this plan be any different?"

"Because we have Batman." Dick pointed to Terry, who stood nearby with folded arms.

"What difference would I make? I'm not Bruce Wayne…"  
>"But you're the closest thing we have to him, and I have seen your escapades in your dimension through some tech that I… 'Borrowed' from an old friend…"<p>

"You never told me about that!" Barbara said, raising her arms.  
>"Shut it! Anyway, I know what you're capable of Terry, and I know you can get us in to take out Joker."<br>Terry nodded, "If it means teaching the clown a lesson, I'm in."

* * *

><p>Harleen laid in the bed in one of Selina's guest rooms, her hair out of the pigtails she had them in and her mask on the side table. She stared at the ceiling silently, thinking about the things in her past and how badly she messed up her life… All because of her insane obsession with the Clown Prince of Crime… She heard a knock on her door.<p>

"C'min…" She said quietly, and the door opened.

Harleen's eyes widened in shock when she saw a pasty white face with green hair step into the room, grinning widely.

"Ah!" Harleen squealed, but then she blinked and saw that it was just Terry.

"Oh, hiya bats." She said quietly.

"Harleen? You okay?" Asked Terry, walking in quietly and standing at the foot of her bed. She sat up Indian style and smiled nervously.  
>"Yeah, never better…"<p>

"I have a question; hope it's not too personal…"  
>"Ask away hot stuff!"<p>

"Okay, why are you so close to Tim here?"  
>Harleen's fake smile disappeared as she looked away.<p>

"You're right, that is a little personal… But here goes…"

* * *

><p>FLASHBACK-<p>

* * *

><p>A loud shot was the first thing Tim Drake heard as he regained his sanity… His wide grin faded as a tear escaped his eyes with the realization that in his madness he had killed the one person who mattered more to him than anyone else, he had killed Bruce Wayne. The only sound he could hear was the Joker's mad laughter, and the thud and falling of the Dark Knight in front of his eyes. It was then that something happened in the 13-year-old's mind, something snapped… All he could think about was the cruel man who had made him not only watch, but kill the closest thing he had to a father he had.<p>

Vengeance is all that filled Robin's mind that night, he continued the masquerade as Joker Junior to get closer to the clown.

The ruse lasted several months, Tim got closer and closer to the Joker, using the knowledge he had of the other villains in the city to his and the Joker's advantage and acting like a true admirer. Tim hated to do it, but to make sure that the Joker's takeover of the country went on unimpeded; he gave his master the kryptonite that Superman had entrusted to Batman… No sooner had the league intervened than did the Joker attack and defeat Superman and the rest of the league with an army of robots… Powerful robots. Tim wasn't exactly sure who could be behind their creation, but he could only stand by as long as the Joker was gaining power.

Eventually, Joker had formed an alliance with a few other villains, namely Mr. Freeze, Lex Luthor from Metropolis, and former District Attourney-turned-supervillain, Two-Face. With promises to reward their work, Joker and his 'friends' (For lack of a better word), had taken half of the country around them. Standing in the middle of it all was a helpless Tim Drake, second in command to the clown prince of crime and the only person with the means to stop him.

In the meantime, someone watched from the sidelines, the Joker's loyal girlfriend watched in jealousy at the attention Tim was getting from Mr. J. Tim took note of this and hoped to use it to his advantage. One night, Harley got into a fight with the Joker, who at this point was now a power-hungry lunatic… Even more so than he was long before. This fight escalated to violence when Harley lost her temper and slapped the Joker across the face. This came as a shock to Tim, Harley always seemed so submissive… He guessed that sooner or later, one of them had to break down.

The Joker was angry with her, of course, so he pulled a knife from his sleeve and was about to take it to Harley, Tim could see what was about to happen… And realized that if he was ever going to avenge Batman… He had to make sure that Joker could never kill anyone he had the chance to save. Just before Joker was to stab her, a black gloved hand caught his arm and flipped him over. The Joker roared in anger at the sight of the boy wonder dressed in black. Black Robin took the fainted Harley out and as far from the madman as possible.

The boy found an abandoned house; the residents were likely murdered during Joker's takeover of Gotham City… He set the unconscious Harley down in a bed in that house, and cleaned the neck wound she had sustained due to the Joker's abuse. When she awoke, she asked Robin what had happened… He told her that the Joker took a knife to her and that he could no longer stand the abuse he put her through and that if she wanted to go back to him again she could and he wouldn't stop her. In that one rescue from her abusive boyfriend, Harley had seen the light. She kissed him on the cheek and told the she could never thank the young boy for helping her to escape him.

Harley Quinn and Black Robin soon became infamous in Joker's City, stealing things and causing havoc for the Joker and the others. They even found a way to shut down all of the super-robots. Eventually they were found by Catwoman and joined by Nightwing and Batgirl…

* * *

><p>END FLASHBACK<p>

* * *

><p>"And the rest…" Harleen pointed out the window to the city outside.<p>

At this point, Terry had sat down on the foot of her bed, completely enthralled by the jestress' story.

"So, you and Tim got real close huh?"

"Well yeah, he's been the only friend I ever got! Well, at least 'till Selina and Dick found us."  
>"What about Barbara?"<br>"She can't stand me, never could I s'pose!" Harley just smirked, her happy smile having returned to her face. Terry smiled back, her grin was just infectious. He stood up, "Thanks for enlightening me Harleen…" She stood up too and kissed his cheek, "No, Thanks for listenin' Bats… And don't be shy about vistin' me babe."

Terry smiled again.

"So, what was your connection to this world's Bruce Wayne?"

"He was… Amazing…" Harley's voice drifted off, she thought and told Terry about how when she was being rehabilitated for the first time, Batman had saved her life. She never could stop thinking about how he could have so much compassion for someone who had never given him anything but trouble.

"He knows what it's like to try and rebuild a life… He just wanted you to have a life better than his." Terry said. Harleen's big blue eyes widened.

"That's almost exactly what he said!"

Terry smiled and said goodnight, as did Harley.

"Goodnight Batman…"


	4. Part 4: The Joker is Wild

Part 4

"Harvey! How nice to see you again old friend, still a two-faced lawyer I see?" The Joker grinned as a man walked into the top room in his building, his face was disfigured halfway. This man was known as the Harvey Dent of this dimension, better known for his alias as Two-face.

"I wish I could say the same to you Joker. I've received information involving a resistance to our forces…"  
>"Oh I know all about the old bat-team resisting me, but they won't last long." The Joker suddenly broke into hysterical laughter.<p>

"Hahaha! They're only alive right now because I need a hobby! Hahahaha!"

Harvey never had patience for Joker's games, so he decided to get right to the point.

"Everyone knows who the Gotham Knights are, I'm talking about the Titans."  
>"The Who?" Joker raised an eyebrow, walking toward Two-face.<p>

"The Titans…" Harvey reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small black device and aimed the end of it for the ground. He turned it on and a hologram was projected onto the white tile of Joker's office. The photo was revealed to be of a tower shaped like a 'T'.

"OOHH the TEEN Titans! The Original Boy Blunder's old gang… How exactly could they be a threat? They broke off years ago." Joker threw his hand up and turned to look out the window.

"They're not exactly Teens anymore… Since they split and we took Gotham city along with half the country, each of their members have been pressing against our forces on their own… Now four of them have found each other.

"So? I've taken an entire city! I took out the Batman! Why should I have to worry about some little resistance I don't know about?" Joker was losing his patience with Harvey, as the information he was being given seemed to be wasting his time. Two-Face just grinned.

"Haha, you obviously haven't done your research Joker… The Titans have proven themselves a four-person army, taking out several of Luthor's combat synthoids as well as clearing Metropolis of crime nearly on their own, and now it appears they are heading in our direction."

Joker smiled again, "Hahaha, so what's the plan Big Bad Harv? Are you gonna whup the brats into their place? Or am I gonna haveta play my… Trump Card?" Joker's grin widened as Harvey's eyes did as well.

"Trump card?"

"Hahahahahahahaha! How do you think I stopped Superman? Even I can't take down that meathead on my own!" Joker walked over to a curtain in the back of the room.

"I have my own little 'Ace in the Hole'." He pulled a rope and the red curtain rose to reveal a giant glass tube filled with liquid. Harvey could see something else in the water, he moved closer and saw there was a young woman with short black hair floating in the water. She was wearing a black and white bodysuit with a club on the white side, seemingly unconscious, she had her eyes wide open and several wires in her forehead.

"Oh my…" Harvey said, stepping back while Joker laughed hysterically.

"Hahahahahahaha! Why so serious Harv? Haven't you met Ace? Why this little girl single-handedly turned Superman's brain into jelly along with the rest of the Justice League! I just had to give 'er a little nudge!" Joker pressed his hands to the glass and walked around it. Harvey stared in horror at Joker's madness… Then he was brought back to his senses.

"I see… Well I guess you have everything under control, I'm afraid I must be going…"  
>"Don't be a stranger Harv! I do love our little chats! Ahahahahahaha!"<p>

* * *

><p>Terry closed Harley's door behind him as another slew of questions flew through his mind… If the Joker had taken over with only those certain villains… What about the others? The boy walked outside in the night, the others were asleep so he hoped that he could leave without being heard. He retrieved his cowl from the drawer in the front room and pulled it on, switching on the cloaking device and leaving silently.<p>

It wasn't at all difficult to see where the Joker had made his base of operations; it was almost exactly where the old Wayne Manor was. In fact, he might have built it on top of it. The building was several stories high, with a massive red paint streak across the side of it painting a smiley face. As Batman soared over the old Gotham City, he heard a voice and a crash down below. He touched down in an alley and saw a gang of familiars holding down a girl… With great difficulty.

Terry got a closer look, they had covered the girl's eyes with some form of metal blindfold and had her hands tied behind her back. He couldn't get a good enough look in the darkness, so he decided to do what Batman does best. A Batarang flew from Terry's wrist and sliced through the gang of people. Missing them but letting them know they were being watched. Upon closer inspection, Batman could tell that these people were this world's Royal Flush gang… If they hadn't been wearing their card uniforms, he wouldn't have guessed due to how different they were. The King raised the black staff he was holding and the club on the end began to glow, illuminating the entire alley. If Terry had done his research correctly, this was one of the first of the Royal Flush gang. He didn't know what exactly they were doing with this girl, but he knew he had to get her out of there.

The Jack was knocked back by an invisible Batman and the gang became more aware of their surroundings, watching in every direction, trying to pinpoint the exact location of their attacker. But almost instantly, the King was knocked unconscious and the Queen and 10 were tied together by a cord. It was then that Batman made himself known, reappearing and taking the girl away from the gang, who could only watch in anger.

Batman set the young woman down, she then opened her mouth and spoke.

"Who is there? Please tell me who has recued me from that gang!" Her voice was rather high, as if she was very young. Upon closer inspection, Batman noticed she had incredibly tan skin, it was almost orange.

"Don't worry, you're safe now." Terry said, and out of his left index finger rose a small blowtorch, and he went to work on the cuffs on her arms.

"This may take some time…"  
>"This type of metal is nameless… I cannot break through it no matter how hard I try."<p>

Batman raised an eyebrow, "You could break through other metals?"

"On my home planet, such skills are the norm for people like me… Unfortunately these people took me from behind and blinded my eyes."

"Sneak attack… Cowards."

The girl smiled, "You remind me of an old friend of mine, he always knew how to fight fairly and still defeat even his toughest foes… I haven't seen him in a long time though."  
>"What happened?" Small sparks continued to fly as the heat from Batman's torch cut slowly through the cuffs.<p>

"A friend of his… Was murdered, and he left me and my friends and never came back. Eventually we all separated."  
>"Sounds rough..."<br>"It has been…"  
>"If you don't mind me asking… What's your name?"<br>"On my home planet, my name is Koriand'r…"  
>"And here?"<p>

"My name translates to Star, Fire. My friends called me Starfire before we split up."  
>Terry finally snapped the cuffs and began to work on the blinder.<p>

"Why was the Royal Flush Gang after you?" Terry asked. Her name seemed familiar to him, but he thought it was just déjà vu.

"That was their name? I haven't heard of them…"  
>"Consider yourself lucky to have survived."<br>"I do."  
>Batman finally finished cutting through the Blinder, and quickly dodged a laser of green light shooting from Starfire's eyes.<p>

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry…" Starfire gasped when she saw Batman in the light.

"It's fine, really."  
>"That is a very intimidating costume you wear… Tell me, what is your name?"<br>"Terry…"  
>Batman pulled of his cowl and revealed his face, to which Starfire blushed.<p>

"Terry McGinnis, you can call me Batman if you like." Terry had already deduced in his mind that in this dimension, if the original Batman was dead and gone, then it didn't much matter if his secret identity was known. Of course, the fact that nobody in a different world could hurt someone from his world because of his identity helped too.  
>"It is very nice to meet you Terry, and thank you for rescuing me."<br>Starfire turned and began to float away, but Terry called after her.

"Hey! Where are you going?"

"I must find the friend I came here searching for, so I must say goodbye to you Batman…"  
>Starfire continued to fly away, when she was joined by Terry, cowl on and wings spread.<p>

"I could help you look… What's their name?"

Starfire stopped in midair.

"Such kindness for someone you just met… Why would you help me? Do you not have other things to do?"  
>"Oh I have plenty to do… But that doesn't mean I should leave you on your own, you may be captured again."<br>Terry said, then thought to himself, -And if the Royal Flush Gang's involved in this, then there must be some link between this girl and whoever they're working for… And unless I miss my guess, that person is the Joker.-

**(Read and Review folks!)**


	5. Part 5: Remember the Titans?

Part 5

Terry and Starfire flew through the city, searching far and wide for Starfire's friend, Terry didn't ask what their name was again, she seemed pretty sensitive about losing them, so he decided not to bring it up.

"Look! There he is! And he's with someone…"

Starfire pointed to a figure running in the street, Batman looked and saw him… And recognized him immediately.

"That's Tim! What's he doing out?" Terry asked himself, knowing well that he was being a total hypocrite by asking that question.

"Robin!" Yelled Starfire as she took off like a shot toward him, closely followed by Batman.

"Starfire! Wait!"

Batman's calls were unheard as Starfire landed in front of Tim, who skidded to a halt.

"Robin!" Starfire cried happily at the sight of the mask and dark hair of Tim Drake in the Robin Suit… Though he only looked on in wonder and annoyance at his path being blocked.

"I don't go by that name anymore, and do I know you?" Asked Black Robin. Batman landed next to Starfire.

"Terry?"  
>"Tim! What are you doing out here?"<br>"Could ask you the same thing!"

Starfire tilted her head at the scene in front of her, then she put her hand on Terry's shoulder.

"I don't believe this is the Robin I'm searching for… His name is Dick…"

Tim stepped forward.

"Well, you won't find him calling him that name anymore… Now can you please get out of my way? I have somewhere to be." Tim walked stiffly past Terry and Kori and was about to start running again when Batman reached out and grabbed his shoulder.

"Tim, where are you going?"  
>"None of your business." Tim pulled away from Terry and took off, the Batman made a motion to go after him, but then he remembered Starfire, who was confused behind him.<p>

"Terry… Is Dick no longer Robin?"

"No he's not… Now he goes by Nightwing."

"Of course he does… We must find Nightwing quickly!"

Starfire went to take off, but Terry grabbed her hand.

"I know exactly where Dick is… Come on."

With that, Batman and Starfire took off running down the street, to the close by building that was Selena Kyle's home.

"He's in there… Hey!" Starfire didn't pay much attention to Batman as she hastened in walking into the house. Terry was about to follow her, when he heard her gasp loudly. He jumped into the house and met a sight that shocked him. The entire house was destroyed, ransacked as if there was a struggle…

"Oh my god…" Batman said when he saw Starfire looking out a broken window. She looked out with tears coming out her green eyes at the object below. Terry looked and saw the body of Dick Grayson in his Nightwing suit, bloody and unmoving.

Terry and Kori got Nightwing inside and on one of the beds, Batman took off his cowl and started to fix the damage the room had taken while Starfire tended to Dick's wounds.

"What could have possibly done this much damage to Nightwing? He's by far the most experienced member of the Gotham Knights… He could kick my butt even if he wasn't wearing my suit."

"His lung has been punctured by something… This." Starfire pulled an object from Dick's chest, and quickly threw it to the ground. Her hands began to glow a light green over the wound, she sighed and sadly said, "I can only do this once, but if it will keep Dick alive, then it is worth it."

Terry stooped down and picked up the small metal object that she had discarded, and scowled when he realized what it was.

"Starfire, this is one of his Wing Dings (Or, Batarangs), but it's coated in some kind of slick film."

"One of his own? Who could possibly have known how to use one? It's not as simple as one may think…"

"I know, which means whoever attacked him knew how to use his weapons with precision…"

Before Terry could finish, Nightwing coughed violently and sat up in his bed, he opened his eyes to see Terry and Koriand'r looking at him in alarm.

"What happened?" Dick yelled, turning in his bed.

"Nightwing! Calm down please, you are in no condition to be moving so quickly!"

Said Starfire, holding his hands and forcing him back to his seat.

"Starfire? Wha-? What are you doing here?"

"Tending to your wounds, you were attacked by someone… Do you know who you were attacked by?"  
>Nightwing held his forehead, "Yes… We were ambushed…"<p>

* * *

><p>-FLASHBACK-<p>

* * *

><p>Nightwing stood on the front stoop of Selena Kyle's home, watching in wonder and distress as a full-costumed Tim Drake ran off into the darkness of the night. His intention was to stop Tim and reprimand him as to why he was running off so late, but Dick knew it was in vain and that Tim would be back soon.<p>

He walked inside and heard a crash in the back of the room, he rushed to the back and saw two figures holding both Catwoman and Batgirl in one arm. He recognized one as Killer Croc, but the other was different, he had a very similar build to Dick, though a bit shorter, he wore a black bodysuit and boots, as well as a gray belt around his waist.

In a flash of light, Nightwing saw that the head of the other assailant was covered by a Red Hood… That's when he leapt into action, aiming a punch for Killer Croc but then feeling a sudden burning pain in his chest. He clutched it and was grabbed by Killer Croc, the man in the Red Hood walked up to him, looked him square in the eye and said, "I was the best, and I always will be the best… Better than you, the kid, or even him." With that, the man in the red hood knocked Dick out before throwing him out the window.

* * *

><p>-END FLASHBACK-<p>

* * *

><p>"That's when I lost consciousness…" Dick finished.<p>

Terry continued to examine the Batarang, realizing it was coated in the poison of some kind of plant.

"This... 'Red Hood', did you ever know him?" Terry asked, giving the Batarang to Dick.

"I may have… He seemed familiar to me."

Starfire helped Nightwing up, giving him his mask.

"I'm going to go find Tim, if you go anywhere, let me know." Terry pulled on his cowl and took off into the city.

"Starfire, what are you doing here?" Dick asked his friend, who stood smiling at him.

"I have been searching for you for months! As have the rest of us!"

"Us?" Dick tilted his head.

"Yes us! The Titans! You remember of course?" She smiled, but Dick's eyes just widened, "You mean… Victor? Gar? Rachel too?"

"Yes! Yes! And Yes! We heard about the Joker's attack on your city and we came as soon as we did! We want to help… Now that Kent and the others are gone."  
>There was a moment of silence as Kori and Dick remembered their fallen superiors… Dick grew a look of determination as he donned his mask again.<p>

"Where are the others Kori?"

"They're likely looking for you elsewhere in Gotham."  
>"Good, then we can find them easily." Dick smiled, something he hadn't done since he found out Bruce was murdered, and they both took off into the city in search of Cyborg, Changeling, and Raven.<p>

**(Review! And gimme feedback on how I'm doing! And on what you think should happen!)**


	6. Part 6: Two Black Birds and an Ace

Part 6

Terry flew over Gotham, watching the ground and searching as hard as he could for the young Tim Drake. The ground seemed to move very quickly beneath him as he flew, he surmised it was because he was so used to flying around a much faster Gotham City. He landed on a rooftop and knelt down, looking for any sign of Tim or The Joker's goons. He sensed something behind him and he quickly turned around, drawing a Batarang launcher and raising it. He scowled when he saw a hooded figure standing in a similar stance as he was, with their hands glowing an almost unearthly black. He could see that the hood was blue, and it covered the majority of that person's face.

"Who are you? And why are you following me?" Terry questioned, lowering his Batarang slightly.

"I followed you because I thought you might lead me to a friend of mine… As for who I am, you don't get to know that until you lower that weapon."

Batman was almost surprised to hear it was a girl's voice, but he did as he was told and lowered his Batarang. The girl's hands stopped glowing and she stood upright.

"Alright, now who are you?"  
>The girl lowered her hood and revealed her face, her skin was pale, her eyes were a deep sapphire blue. She had short hair, cut to mid-neck length, and a red gem in the center of her forehead.<p>

"My name is Raven… And I'm looking for Dick Grayson."

Batman folded his arms, as if he was having an annoying case of déjà vu.

"You too? Look, I'd love to help, but I'm searching for someone myself… Besides, I think someone else found him before you did Raven."

Terry turned to leave, but then he felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to see a frowning Raven.

"Someone found him? Who?"  
>"I helped a girl named Starfire to find him, they're both together at this point."<p>

"You helped Starfire to find him…" Raven said, almost disbelieving.

"And who exactly are you?" She inquired. Terry looked into the sky, and spread the wings on his back.

"I'm Batman."

With that, Terry took off into the sky, heels ablaze with jet fire. Raven caught up to him however, flying near to him.

"I'm sorry, did you just say that you were Batman?"

"Yes… And I get that he's been dead for a while, I'm his replacement for now."  
>Raven held out her hand and in less than a second, Batman was stopped in his tracks by black energy and lowered to the ground.<p>

"Look, what do you want?" Terry said impatiently, to which Raven replied somberly, "Thank you, for helping us to find Robin… Now I want to help you find whoever you are looking for."

Terry's eyes widened, and the black energy dispersed, he looked Raven in the eye and saw that she was sincere, he could always tell when someone was lying, he could sense it… It was one of the many tricks that Bruce had taught him in his training to become batman.

"Thank you, Raven… Come on, we're wasting time."

* * *

><p>Tim Drake stood less than a hundred feet from the Joker's headquarter building, glaring at where his home once stood… He quickly made his way to the left of the building where a well stood ominously on a hill. Tim clambered into the well and fell down it, landing on the bottom of it. He took an object from his belt and lit the dark hole with a red light. He shone it on a black brick and pushed it, the brick fell forward and the rest of the ones around it followed, leading to a tunnel.<p>

Tim sprinted down the tunnel passage until he came upon a large room with a big glass tube in it's center, where a girl, known only as Ace, floated asleep in the water inside it.

"Ace?" Black Robin said, pressing his hand to the glass. Ace's eyes snapped open, and she fell to the bottom of the tube, using her powers to convert the liquid in the tube to air.

"Tim… I was beginning to think you had forgotten me…" She said smiling and pressing her hand against the glass as well.

"I'd never forget you Ace… I only wish I could get you out of this tube." Tim lamented, frowning.

"I do too Tim... Is Harleen here too?"

"No, I decided not to wake her up."

"That's too bad…"

Ace sat down in the center of her tube, cross-legged, and Tim did the same. The three of them, Ace, Tim, and Harleen, would visit often without the Joker ever knowing about it. Tim always had one thing on his mind; how to free Ace from the Joker's cruel usage… however, all the young man could do was comfort her and give her companionship.

"It's not as bad as you think Tim… Not nearly so anymore." Ace said on the subject of her prison.

"Most of the time, he doesn't use my powers… So I live in my dreams."  
>"You're all I ever think about Ace… All I ever think about is getting you out…"<p>

"And saving me like you could not Batman...But what of Harleen? And your friends? Don't they ever enter your thoughts?"

Tim paused and looked down, and Ace's eyes widened.

"Tim, I just read your mind…"

The Boy's head snapped up at this, his eyes large.

"There is a new Batman?"

* * *

><p>Nightwing and Starfire weaved in and out of Gotham's many alleys and buildings, searching for any sign of their team. Starfire suddenly stopped in an alley and called Dick to her side.<br>"Do you see anyone Star?" He asked, returning to her.

"Yes…" Starfire said despondently and floated into the alley toward a heap of metal in it. She illuminated the pile with her hand to reveal that it was the broken down body of Victor Stone, the Cyborg.

"Cyborg…" Nightwing knelt down and looked at his friend's unconscious face, he looked older than when they last met, and his cyborganic parts seemed much newer and more sleek.

"He has been deactivated and left here to waste… Poor Victor." Starfire said piteously. She lifted Victor to his feet and put her hand on his metal chest, her hand sparked and Cyborg's body whirred back to life. He opened his eyes and held his head, then turned it to see Starfire.  
>"Starfire, am I glad to see you! Did you find-?" Cyborg started, but then his gaze turned to the man standing in front of him in a black suit.<p>

"Dick, is that you?"

"Nice to see you again Tin Man."

Victor smiled, as did Starfire at the idea that the three of them were reunited.

"Cyborg, what happened to you just now? We found you deactivated here." Starfire asked, and Victor put his hand on his forehead and rubbed his temple.

"I was ambushed by some guy in a red can, said somethin' about him being better than you, Dick, and that he was ready to take you out."

Nightwing scowled and looked up.

"The Red Hood strikes again… He seems focused on me, as if I'm his prime target."

"Perhaps you wronged him in the past…" Starfire suggested.

"Or maybe he just needs a good old fashioned kick in the head." Cyborg snarled.

"Well, whatever his problem is, if he hurts anymore of the people I care about…"  
>Nightwing threw a wingding at the alley wall in anger, it stuck without vibrating and cracked the wall.<p>

"I hope he'll be ready… Because unlike Batman, I'm not afraid to finish him off."

Nightwing began walking off, and Starfire and Cyborg walked behind him… Caught off guard by Dick's new attitude…

Wondering if he meant that he would kill given the chance.

**(Review, and Let me know how I'm doing! Edits have been made!)**


	7. Part 7: Meanwhile In Our Gotham

_**Part 7**_

The only sound that could be heard coming from the batcave was from the worried whining of the black bat hound Ace, and typing from a whirring bat-computer. The elderly Bruce Wayne paused in his work and reached down to comfort the dog, who was worried about it's other master, Terry McGinnis, who had been missing for three days, along with his Batsuit.

"It's alright boy, we'll find him…" Said Wayne, in his usual serious tone, he put his hand on his chin and thought in silence. Not only was Terry missing, but the Batsuit was nowhere to be found as well… Even by the global positioning system built into it. There were only two possible explanations for this; Either the Batsuit has been completely demolished (And Terry along with it), or…

Bruce put his hand on his face, thinking hard about how it could be possible that Terry was in another world. Then it struck him, maybe he was taken to that world by something… or someone… who could travel across dimensions.

If that was the case, he was obviously in trouble and had no way to contact him.

Terry wasn't stupid, but he wasn't nearly as smart or experienced as Bruce, it takes two people to be Batman. Bruce could never admit it, but he was worried about the teenage Batman.

Bruce was slightly startled by the electronic opening of the door behind him; he turned in his chair to find the familiar form of Max Gibson walking into the batcave. She looked angry, but the old man could never tell with her.

"Alright old man, where's Terry?" She hissed, storming into the Batcave.

"You tell me, I have no idea."  
>"You better not be holding' out on me Mr. Wayne! I've had to deal with his girlfriend for the last three days, so if you know anything that could possibly get him back SOON, you'd better spill it!"<p>

Bruce glared at Max, though his facial expression didn't change much, she just felt this chill go down her spine, she took a guess and figured this must be how Terry's enemies felt when he gave them the infamous 'bat-glare'.

The old man turned in his chair and typed something else into the bat computer.

"If I knew where he was, I'd have gone to find him myself by now…"

"What about the Batsuit? Doesn't it have some kind of GPS on it?" She asked and leaned on his chair.

"Of course, at least, it did. The way I see it, either Terry and the Batsuit have been destroyed…" Max grimaced.

"Or, he's been sent to another world entirely… And if there's been no mention of his death at school..."  
>"Nope."<br>"Then we can't assume the worst."

"Right… I just hope he's still alive."

"Me too Gibson… Me too."

* * *

><p>"Ugh… It's bad enough Terry left without telling me, he won't answer my calls, he hasn't shown up at school, no e-mails, text messages, nothing!… At first I was mad, but now I'm just worried about him…" Said Dana Tan, propping her head up on her elbow. She and her friends Chelsea, Max, and Blade sat at a table at her favorite restaurant.<p>

"Dana, I went and talked to Mr. Wayne about Terry." Max said, Dana's eyes lit up and she smiled a little.

"And?"

Max shook her head sadly, which caused Dana to slump in her seat even more than she was before.

"Is he in Juvi again?" asked Chelsea, leaning in.

"I asked his mom about it, she said she filed a report with the police and they said he wasn't back in Juvi." Dana said sadly, she seemed on the verge of tears worried about Terry. She was used to him disappearing randomly, but at least then she knew it was on an errand for Mr. Wayne, or Max would tell her where he was. But now no one knew where he was and she couldn't stop thinking about him.

That night, Dana lay in her bed thinking about her missing boyfriend… She tossed and turned in her bed, unable to sleep. That's when she really stopped to think about his disappearance… Not only had Terry been gone, but there had been news reports of rising crime in the past few days… She put two and two together and realized that not only was Terry gone, but so was **Batman. **

Almost immediately, she jumped from her bed and got dressed, she knew that if anyone would know about the dark knight's disappearance, it was the Police Commissioner.

Dana snuck out quietly, and ran straight to the Police station, where Commissioner Gordon was working late; she too was concerned for Terry… Mostly because of the city's rising crime rate, but she was nonetheless anxious for the safety of the boy in the suit. She heard a knock on the door and heard Dana's voice.

"Commissioner Gordon?"  
>"Yes, come in…"<p>

Dana walked in quietly, Barbara stood up.

"Young lady, what are you doing out this late? Have you any idea what time it is?"

"I'm sorry Commissioner Gordon… I just wanted to tell you something about Batman's disappearance…"  
>Barbara raised her eyebrows, "I'm listening."<br>"Let me introduce myself, I'm Dana, Dana Tan… And my boyfriend went missing at the same time Batman did. I can't help but feel that the two might be related."

The Commissioner sat down again, realizing that this girl may be Terry's girlfriend.

"You wouldn't happen to be Terry McGinnis' girlfriend, would you?"

"Yeah, I am… And I'm worried about him. Did his mom already file a missing person's report?"

"Yes, she did, and we're doing the best we can Dana, now go home before your parents find out you're missing."

Dana did as she was told and Barbara watched her leave, and as soon as she was out of sight, the older woman left immediately toward Wayne Manor. What Barbara didn't know; is that Dana saw her leave and followed her.

"Barbara, do you have any idea what time it is?" Said Bruce Wayne gruffly as the Police Commissioner walked into his study.

"I just hope it's not too late for the boy, Wayne." Barbara scowled and sat in the seat across from Bruce's desk.

"I knew you'd come to me about this sooner or later, I just didn't think you'd take so long."

Wayne leaned forward in his desk, stone-faced. Barbara sat up calmly, though she did seem agitated.

"If you know where he is, you'll tell me now."

Bruce gritted his teeth.

"If I knew where Terry was, do you think I'd be within miles of this place?"

"You spend so much time coaching the boy from behind that computer, I assumed you'd just try and save him from there."

Barbara said in a deadpan. Bruce glared at the former Batgirl, and then closed his eyes.

"You can come in Dana…"

Barbara's eyes widened as she turned around and saw Dana walking in slowly through the large door.

"You followed me?" Barbara said, pushing back her distressed emotions.

"I had to! I knew you knew something about Terry and I had to find out!"

Bruce smiled smugly,

"Has being out of practice so long made you soft Barbara? You used to be able to hear a mouse following you."

Barbara scowled and gritted her teeth at the elderly man, Dana stood in the background losing her patience.

"If you know something and you're not telling me-!" Before Dana could finish, Bruce put a hand up and walked over to Dana.

"Terry tells me a lot about you Dana, and I have to say that he isn't lying when he says you're one of the most beautiful women in this city…"  
>Dana blushed when she heard that Terry talks to his boss about her.<p>

"… He also says you're very strong-minded, as well as loyal. Would you say he's telling the truth?"

Dana nodded slowly and Barbara looked at Wayne as if he were crazy. Bruce looked Dana over a little in a glance.

"Excuse my forwardness, but how do you stay in such fit shape?"

Dana blushed a little, but there was something about Bruce Wayne, she couldn't explain it, but she felt like she could trust him with anything.

"You can thank Terry for that… He's been teaching me how to defend myself ever since that little incident with Ratboy…"

Bruce nodded and walked over to his bookcase.

"Beautiful, strong, loyal, determined… You are everything Terry claims you to be… Except…"  
>Dana watched the old man intently, "Except?"<p>

"He says you're smart and observant as well…"  
>Dana felt a little insulted.<p>

"What do you mean?"  
>"Terry claims that you are very observant. Think for a moment Dana, who went missing around the same time McGinnis did?"<p>

Dana knew he was talking about Batman, and a thought flashed through her mind…

"Batman."  
>"Smart girl."<p>

"But what does he have to do with-…"

Dana's eyes snapped wide open when she put Terry and Batman in the same sentence. "Mr. Wayne?"

"Yes?"

"Do you know something…? About Terry… And Batman?"

Barbara and Bruce exchanged knowing glances, and led Dana to the old grandfather clock in the wall.

* * *

><p>Batman and Raven stood in an alley, they had just recently avoided a group of massive green-and-purple synthoids.<p>

"We're trapped…" Batman said through gritted teeth.

"It's best we lie low until those synthoids are far off…" Raven said, sitting down against the brick wall. Terry did the same.

"Right… So what exactly is your relation to Dick Grayson?" Terry asked her; this question had been gnawing at his mind since he had met Starfire earlier, and he felt much more comfortable asking Raven.

"We never called him Dick; he was always Robin to us."

"Well, he doesn't go by Robin anymore."  
>"I know."<p>

"How do you and Starfire know him?"

Raven looked down.

"Dick, Kori, and I were all once part of a team. We called ourselves the Teen Titans back then. We were near-unstoppable, no matter who we fought against, no matter how terrible the odds, we'd come out on top."  
>"So what happened?"<p>

"Joker happened…"

"We were celebrating a recent victory in Jump City, we had been fighting together for three years at that point, and most of us weren't exactly teens anymore.

Then Robin stepped away from the celebration, he had a phone call to take. What was said would change our lives forever… Three seconds into Robin's phone call, I could sense something in him, his emotions were spiraling out of control, and he was being told that his mentor, Batman, had been murdered at the hands of one of his old enemies.

The Joker.

Robin disappeared into his room after that; he didn't come out for several days. When he did come out, he was a completely different person.

He said he was leaving the Titans, Kori, Garf, and Victor all wanted to talk him out of it, but I stopped them.

* * *

><p>-FLASHBACK-<p>

* * *

><p>"Do what you have to Dick…" Said Raven, standing in front of a distraught Beast Boy, a shocked Cyborg, and the emotional wreck known as Starfire.<p>

"We won't stop you…"

Raven gave him a hug and he returned it.

"Thank you Raven…"

They pulled away and Dick took off into the night, in his newly-discovered Nightwing suit.

"Raven… Why did you let him leave?" Yelled Koriand'r, her eyes glowing with green energy. Raven glared at her, and pulled her hood down.

"You have no idea what Dick has been through Kori, I do, he's in more pain now than you could ever imagine. He wants to go back to Gotham City, he believes that the death of his mentor, his father, Batman was his fault... Maybe it's just re-rising emotions from when his biological father and mother died, and he just couldn't take feeling that pain again... So he grew into self hatred."  
>"But it wasn't! We must-…"<p>

Starfire was about to follow Nightwing, but Raven held out her hand and stopped her.

"He has to be alone for now… If you're his friend… You'll respect that."

Starfire knew Raven was right, and fell to her knees in tears. Cyborg picked her up and the group walked back into Titans tower.

* * *

><p>-END FLASHBACK-<p>

* * *

><p>"Without Robin, the Titans split up in a matter of days, Cyborg started leading his own group of Titans, Changeling went back to his old group, and Starfire stayed in Jump City protecting it from crime…"<br>Terry narrowed his eyes.

"And you?"

"I…"

Before Raven could answer, there was a sudden flash of light in a nearby street, and the two dark figures were on the defensive. They rushed out to see what the ordeal was, and they saw a sight that shocked them both.

Tim Drake was unconscious at the feet of the Joker.

"Joker!" Batman roared, drawing a Batarang. The Joker, who was smiling wickedly at that point, looked up and his face changed. He looked as if he had seen a ghost.

"No, it can't be!" Joker stepped back as he caught the sight of the black, pointy-eared figure advancing on him.

"Right, it CAN'T be! Hahahaha! You must be one of those Titans playing dress-up with old Batsy's clothes! It'd be funny if it wasn't so pathetic!"

Raven used her powers to carry Tim over to her; she held his unconscious body while Batman scowled at the white-faced madman.

"What have you done to Tim clown?" He yelled in anger, to which Joker simply waved his finger, "Temper, Temper Bats! Little Timmy here got caught snooping around my basement, so I did what any normal person would do to trespassers… BEAT 'EM WITH A CROWBAR! HAHAHAHA!"

The Joker laughed maniacally.

Raven examined the damage Tim had taken, "Batman! If he doesn't get medical attention soon, he's not going to make it!"

"Leaving so soon Batman? I think not! I've missed kicking you around!"

The Joker grinned darkly, and despite every inch of Terry's body telling him to attack the clown prince of crime… He knew he had to get Tim out of there as soon as possible. He reached for his belt and twisted the buckle, turning him invisible.

"That's a new trick!" The Joker said, surprised and amused at the same time.

"You'll get what's coming to you soon enough Joker… Watch your back!"

He flew off and Raven flew with him, following the sound of the rockets on his boots.

"Ohh, I can't wait…" The Joker grinned crazily and watched as the two left.

**(Yeah, longer chapter, things I should fix? Continuity questions? Stuff I need to work on? REVIEW SO I CAN GET BETTER! It's for YOUR benefit!)**


	8. Part 8: The Plot Thickens

**(Notice: In my recent ventures into the Batman Beyond fandom, I've noticed that Dana Tan gets a lot of hate… Understandable, didn't like her much myself when I was a kid and watching the show.**

**However, it is in-canon that Terry and Dana are a relationship, and they stay that way for 15 years before Terry finally DOES ask her to marry him.**

**(See Justice League Unlimited, 'Epilogue')  
>So, with that in mind, I decided to canon-ize my fanfic by keeping the TerryDana couple, and at the same time make her a more likable character by going further into her character, rather than the Flat Dana that was in the actual series. Dana haters please keep an open mind, and thanks for Reading and Reviewing! **

_**Part 8**_

Harvey Dent wasn't sure what he was doing, but he knew it had to be done… He stood on the front doorstep of an old building, located in an area of Gotham that was once known as 'Crime Alley'. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the large fifty cent double-headed coin he carried with him at all times. He balanced it on his thumb and flipped it, it flew into the air spinning several times, then landed in Dent's hand with the bad-heads side up, the side that had a large 'X' carved into it.

Two-Face kicked the door down, drawing two large machine guns from their holsters and pointing them at the people in the dimly-lit room. Four people sat at a table in the room, a man that had scaly skin and razor-sharp teeth he recognized as Killer Croc.

Another had his feet up on the table, he recognized him as Deathstroke, or 'Slade' as he was once known. The third person was a woman, one Harvey recognized as Pamela Isley, an ex-girlfriend of his and the super villain Poison Ivy.

The fourth person stood up and smirked darkly at Dent, he strode around the table and put his hand on it, leaning on one leg. His green bodysuit and distinctive purple question mark on its chest made it no mystery that this was The Riddler.

"Riddle me this, my friends, what has one head and two minds, and uses silver to make its decisions?"

Two-Face frowned.

"I don't have time for riddles, Nigma, I came here on business."

"What's the matter Dent? Has the Joker cast you aside?" Deathstroke said smugly, which earned him a bullet in the arm from Dent's machine gun. Riddler could tell Dent wasn't fooling around, as Killer Croc and Poison Ivy helped Deathstroke out of the room to fix him up, Riddler closed and locked the door behind him.

"Alright Dent, what business do you have with me?" Riddler asked seriously, to which Harvey replied, "I know that you know exactly where every villain in this city is… And I know that you're organizing them to take Joker down.

"You're a clever man Harvey; tell me, why do you choose to work with the madman? Surely you had a choice?" Riddler questioned.

"I flipped a coin." Harvey said smugly.

"Ah, of course you did." Said Riddler.

"The reason I'm here, is to tell you there's someone back in town that you may want to see."

"Who might that be Mr. Dent?"

Harvey handed a small, black object to Riddler; it was a black and red Batarang.  
>"This… Is Batman alive?"<p>

"Sadly, no. But the person who uses these objects worked with Bruce long ago, before the Joker beat him senseless and he went rogue.

"You mean his second boy blunder?"  
>"Jason Todd, known better by his new alias…"<p>

Two-Face threw the Batarang hard at a wall; it detonated and blew the entire wall away in a red explosion.

"The Red Hood."

"Red Hood…" Riddler thought for a moment, and then turned back to Harvey.  
>"Have you any more of those weapons Harvey?"<br>"Of course."

Harvey handed Riddler another Batarang, he examined it and discovered that there was a strange green film that coated it.

"It would seem young Jason is getting new toys… Riddle me this, Two-Face, what makes many leaves, but never goes anywhere?"

Two-Face scowled, "A Tree."

Riddler grinned, "This weapon is poisoned with the anger-adrenaline inducing chemical produced by the leaves of the black ivy tree."

"And who do we know that has a black ivy tree?"

* * *

><p>Dick, Kori, and Victor all walked together through the place that was once Gotham City Park, now it was nothing but a burned patch of land with no life to be found anywhere. They were searching for their other comrades, Raven and Beast Boy, but this task was far easier said than done. Suddenly, Nightwing heard the moaning of a wounded animal nearby, the animal moaning gradually changed to human moaning. Dick led Starfire and Cyborg to the sound; all three were horrified to find Changeling, lying on the ground in pain. They all ran to his side and found several cuts and bruises on his body, and a Batarang inside the man's side, from which blood was spilling out.<p>

"Garfield!" Starfire whimpered as Nightwing ripped the Batarang from Gar's cut. Dick cursed under his breath and examined the weapon while Cyborg and Starfire tended to Beast Boy's wounds.

They found a place that wasn't quite as conspicuous and out in the open; an abandoned diner. Dick sat down and compared the two Batarangs he had taken from his own wound and Changeling's. He scowled and rubbed the surface of both, they both had a film on them, but they had completely different textures.

"Don't worry Gar; we'll pull ya through this, just stay alive…" Said Cyborg, frowning and continuing to tend to Changeling's injuries.

"This Batarang has a poison on it, just a simple plant poison extracted from a rose, Gar'll live, but he won't be able to move until he gets an antidote." Nightwing stated, walking up.

"What of the weapon you were incapacitated with? Surely it had some form of poison as well?"

"It has a substance on it, but it's not the same as what's on Changeling's, I don't know what it is."

There was a silence in the room, a still silence as if there had been a death. Nightwing turned out and away, walking out to the door of the building.

"I'm going to see if I can't find Rachel, you two stay here and radio me if there's any change."

Starfire was going to protest Dick going alone, but Cyborg answered first, "Be careful Dick, don't get in over your head."

Dick nodded and walked out of the old diner, and launched his grappling hook toward a building close by.

* * *

><p>Bruce, Barbara, and Dana walked through the dimly lit cave that was hidden behind the old grandfather clock in Bruce's front room. Dana couldn't believe what she was seeing, the massive computer, the Batmobile, and three suits in glass cases. She also noticed a fourth glass case that was empty. It nearly knocked her off her feet as she came to the realization of the most obvious fact that could ever stare someone in the face… And to think he was so close this whole time.<p>

"Mr. Wayne, you… You're Batman?" Dana said, half trying to contain her excitement.  
>Bruce turned to her, "<em>Was<em> Batman, and Commissioner Gordon was Batgirl at one point, and she then became Oracle before she was made commissioner."

Dana looked at Barbara, whose face was as still as Bruce's, she nodded.

Dana finally accepted it in her mind, though she could barely take the impact of the reality. The constant flaking on dates, disappearing to who knows where… Dana now knew that Batman was her boyfriend.

"Terry is Batman now, isn't he?" Dana choked, beating herself up mentally for not figuring it out sooner and breaking up with him so many times for it. Bruce nodded, sitting down at the seat in front of the largest computer screen Dana had ever seen.

"Terry wanted to tell you himself eventually, but with his disappearance and our lack of leads, it is best you know now."

"I just can't believe I was dumb enough not to figure it out myself…" Dana looked to the screen of the computer, and didn't notice Barbara slowly slipping out of the room.

"Mr. Wayne, what is this?" Dana asked, staring at the screen which was currently nothing but static.

"These are Terry's eyes and ears, I can run the suit from here if it's anywhere on this planet…"  
>"Then why is it-?" Her eyes widened.<p>

"Is he-?"

Bruce glared, "No, he's not dead, Terry may not seem like it, but he's much smarter than you'd think. If the suit was destroyed completely, I'd know, this screen would be blank, not static like it is now."  
>"So you've been searching for him too."<br>"Gotham city needs a Batman, and if we can't find Terry there won't be one street in this Hell of a city that's safe."

Looking on into the screen of the Batsuit's eyes, Dana couldn't push a thought from her mind, she finally said it out loud.

"Why are you telling me this Mr. Wayne?"

Bruce looked up at Dana, face stone cold as always.

"Dana, I need a favor to ask of you, I need you to find two things for me."

Dana nodded, "If it's going to help find Terry, then I'll do anything."  
>"Good, first, I need a bit of his DNA, a hair, clothes, saliva, blood, anything with his genetic code in it."<p>

Dana nodded, that shouldn't be too hard to get, considering his mother trusts Dana in about everything she does.

"Good, second, I need part of the Batsuit, this may be a bit harder to obtain, but I believe with the amount of times Terry has broken the suit, finding a bit of the cloth from it will be less of a challenge than it sounds. I want it here as soon as you obtain it, in the meantime I'll be trying to get a connection to the suit."

"Alright, thank you…"

"And another thing, do you know Maxine Gibson?"  
>"Of course I do…"<br>"It may be a good idea to tell her you know Terry's secret as well."

"Max knows?"

"Of course, why else would she cover for him every time he has 'flaked' on your dates?"

Dana blushed, and she left the room frustrated, "I'm gonna kick her ass..." she thought, while Bruce smirked to himself, thinking about the sparks that were going to fly between Max and Dana…

* * *

><p>Tim stirred in his unconsciousness, opening his eyes to see the familiar face of Terry, and one not-so-familiar face.<p>

"Terry…" Tim groaned, putting his hand on his side, it had a bandage wrapped around it.

"Tim, are you alright?" Terry inquired, sitting down next to him, "Yeah… I'm alive at least… Who is she?"

He pointed to Raven, who had also sat down next to him.

"This is Raven; she helped me find you… Now tell me what the slag you were doing!"  
>Tim sat up, still clutching his side, "I was… Visiting a friend that Joker captured a long time ago…"<br>"Who is this friend?" Asked Terry.

"Anyone we know?" Raven appealed.

Tim sighed and knew he couldn't keep the secret now that Joker knew.

"Her name is Ace; she was once part of the Royal Flush Gang."  
>The hair on Terry's neck stood on end when he heard this, he heard about Ace from Bruce, but for some reason, he didn't talk about her as much as he did about the gang as a whole.<p>

"How did you get mixed up with her?"

Tim began to explain…

* * *

><p><em><strong>-FLASHBACK- <strong>_

* * *

><p>The counter beeped on a Joker bomb as Harley Quinn and Black Robin made their escape from a warehouse that the clown trapped them in. Like the acrobats they were, Quinn and Robin attempted to make it out through a window, but the Joker had anticipated this, and had replaced all of the windows with steel frames. There was nearly no escape, when Harley pointed to a crate that had split open. The crate's broken exterior partially hid a hole that led to Gotham's sewer system.<p>

Harley pulled Black Robin into the hole as the warehouse exploded on top of them. The two of them walked along the sewer wall attempting to find a way out and to safety. Tim heard voices coming from a vent above them, he looked up and saw the Joker talking to someone, he couldn't quite make out the words, but he could tell that whoever he was conversing with wasn't there by choice.

"Harley… There's someone up there."  
>"Ya sure?" Harley turned and asked skeptically.<p>

"Sure I'm sure…C'mon."

Tim broke through the vent and clambered in, Harley right behind him.

Tim's heart sank as he looked around and saw nothing but cement wall, but then he heard a tap on glass behind him, he turned to see Harley speaking with a girl in a large tube.

"Ace, what has the creep done to ya babe?" Harley asked sympathetically, Ace just frowned as usual and pointed to the wires connected to her head.

Black Robin walked up as well, "I know you! You're Ace of Clubs, the Royal Flush Gang's most powerful operative."

Ace nodded. Harley frowned and scowled, "I can't believe that creep would put you in a tube! And he was all braggin' about him takin' down Superman on his own!"  
>Suddenly, the pieces fit together, all this time, Tim could never figure out how Joker defeated the Justice League on his own… Now he knew that this girl's powers were the key…"<p>

* * *

><p><strong>-End Flashback-<strong>

* * *

><p>"Joker used Ace's mind powers to defeat all of the most powerful heroes on the planet, he found her just after Batman died and used her powers in this weapon of his that completely melts your brain…"<p>

Raven's eyes widened.

"So it's true, we are the only ones left…"

Terry had never felt so much hatred for one man in his life, (Other than Derek Powers), how The Joker had the gall to hide behind an innocent being's powers and then take the credit for what those powers did… Despicable.

"So where is Ace now?"

"I don't know, all I remember is her warning me that Joker was behind me, then he knocked her unconscious with this electric shock from inside her tube and hit me in the pressure point with a crowbar. Then that clown dragged me out into this street and nearly beat me to death… If you two hadn't shown up, I probably wouldn't be here now."

"That monster…"

Raven scowled and stood up, helping Tim to his feet.

"Terry, we need to find Ace and rescue her if we're ever going to take Joker down."

"I know…"

It was at this point that Terry wished most that he could ask Bruce for advice more than ever.

_**(Let's not forget to REVIEW! Seriously, it'll help me write better and update sooner if you review, so go! Do it! Fast! :D)**_


	9. Part 9: Return of Wayne

**Part**_** 9**_

Dana knocked on the door of Mary and Matt McGinnis' home, she knew and had confidence that Terry's mother trusted her and would let her in. Mary opened the door and sighed, "Dana, oh, thank god it's you…"

"Hey Mrs. McGinnis… Were you expecting someone else?"

"Never mind sweetheart, come in."

Mary lead Dana into the house, she looked around for anything that would have Terry's DNA on it.

"I'm sorry for asking, but have you seen Terry, Dana?"  
>"No, actually, that's why I'm here Mrs. McGinnis."<p>

Mary raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

"Mr. Wayne and I talked about Terry's disappearance, he's concerned too… And he told me he has connections that could help us find him faster!"

Dana's thoughts raced as she lied, she hoped Mary would buy it; otherwise she'd have to tell Terry's Mom about his secret.

"Really? Thank god for Bruce Wayne! What does he need?"

Dana sighed in her head in relief, "He just needs a DNA sample, hair maybe?"

Mary got up and went straight for Terry's bedroom, she came back and handed Dana Terry's pillow.

"There, I haven't washed that in weeks, it should have plenty of Terry on it."  
>"Gross!" Dana giggled, Mary did as well.<p>

She waved as she left Terry's home, and she held the earpiece that she had on.

"Alright Mr. Wayne, I have the DNA sample… Any idea where I might find bits of the Batsuit lying around?"

Bruce spoke through the earpiece, "Alright, excellent Dana… Come back to the Batcave, and bring the sample."  
>"Alright."<p>

Bruce sat at his computer, restlessly searching for a clue as to where Terry might be. He was broken from his focus by the footsteps of Dana behind him.

"Here you go Mr. Wayne."

Dana handed him the pillow, he placed it in a console and closed the door behind it. The computer screen flashed for a moment, scanning the pillow for DNA, and coming up with four sets of it.

Skin particles from Dana, Matt McGinnis, and Mary McGinnis, and hair from Terry.

"It worked, now let's see if we can… Ah, good."

Dana watched Bruce type in something and the screen changed, showing a planet that looked similar to Earth… Very similar.

"Bruce, this is saying Terry's still on Earth."  
>"Yes and no, he's on Earth alright, just not ours."<p>

Dana was about to ask, but then she realized she wouldn't get it anyway.

"Let's home in on his genetic code, and…"  
>Bruce's eyes widened at the sight before him, the computer was showing him Terry's vision. He saw Tim Drake on the ground in front of Terry, hurt, but alive.<p>

Bruce stood up and walked toward a door in the back of the Batcave. Dana followed, confused.

"Mr. Wayne! What are you doing?"

Bruce didn't answer, but hurriedly opened a case that held a bulky, metal, black armor with a silver bat symbol across the front.

"What is that?"  
>"My second most recent Batsuit… For me in emergencies only."<p>

"Your second?"

Bruce nodded, he pointed to another Batsuit in the room, in the light, she could see that this suit was built for a woman. The bat on the front was Violet, and the cowl's back was cut, obviously to allow hair outside it.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! You want me to-?"

The elderly Bruce nodded and stepped inside the large mechanical Batsuit.

"Will you at least explain why? And what about that part of Terry's suit you need?"

Bruce groaned in disdain, but explained to her what he had figured out.

"This is far bigger than a regular kidnapping into a separate dimension, somebody has been planning this, and I have a feeling I know who it is."  
>"So we're going to travel to this other dimension?"<p>

"No, I am."

Dana scowled, "What?"

"Gotham needs a Batman at all times; I've let too much crime go out in the last three days. How far along are you in your training with Terry?"

"He's been training me since the Ratboy incident, so about a year and a half in… Honestly, those lessons were the most fun things I ever did with him... But I still don't know if I can replace Batman!"  
>"You can, with what you say you know now; the suit will amplify your strength <em>and <em>skill tenfold... I've made certain even the greenest rookie could work that suit."

"Isn't that a little unsafe? What if-?"  
>"I have a failsafe button<br>Dana took another look at the Batsuit, and took a deep breath.

"Alright old man, I trust you because Terry trusts you…"

Dana left quickly to change into the Batsuit, while Bruce stepped into his. The mechanical suit whirred and wrapped itself around Bruce's aging body. He stepped out into the batcave. Inside the suit, Bruce could see everything, perfect vision and mobility. He never wanted to use this suit; he felt it was cheating to use such powerful machinery rather than his own body…. But he was too concerned about Terry to care about that now.

Dana examined herself in the mirror of the Batcave's changing room, she loved the skin-tight suit, she felt stronger, taller, and more confident than she had in three days! Then she examined her wrists, pressing an invisible button that dispensed a violet batarang. She smiled and stepped out of the room, and to her surprise, she saw the eight-foot Iron Batsuit[1] sitting at the computer with a wire connecting it.

"Dana, once I leave, I will have a radio link to both you and Terry, if you need assistance, do NOT hesitate to ask… I don't want you getting killed."

"I won't, believe me, but I'll still ask a 'Q' if I need to!"

"Good, now here are some places I need you to go…" Bruce handed Dana a holographic disk that had several addresses on it, "… They're links to people who may know something about Terry's transportation. I've informed the Justice League and they are doing all they can as well."  
>Dana nodded and looked up at the old man, then hugged him in the suit.<p>

"Thank you for everything Mr. Wayne… I won't let you down, just bring Terry home."

With that, Bruce nodded and the suit glowed for a split second, and then vanished all together. Dana looked down at the disk in her gloved hand, and grew a look of determination. She rushed out of the batcave, kicked off the ground, spread the violet wings on her back and took off. She was surprised at how easy flying was with the help of her jet-filled soles. She then re-focused her thoughts on finding things in the current Neo Gotham; she looked at the disk and saw the first address was to an apartment building near the outside of the city. She looked at the name next to the address.

"Amanda Waller… Who could that be?"

**_ BATSUIT: The name Bruce Wayne gave to this last-resort suit. Its abilities include: massive strength increase, near-unlimited supply of explosive batarangs, jet-propulsion with bat-wing stabilizers, night vision, situational cloaking device, synchronization to the bat computer, radio connection to all suits on its frequency no matter where (Or when) they are, and impressive increase in weight, over 1000lbs of steel. This suit is the larger, heavier version of Terry's suit._**

* * *

><p>Terry walked out of the old diner, leaving Raven to tend to Tim, he then took off quickly, jetting toward the Joker's giant building, he swore he saw a flash of lightning in the distance, but he figured it was just a storm coming in. Then he heard a loud crash coming from that direction, and was conflicted as to whether he should go check it out or go ahead with his planned search for Ace.<p>

"Oh… Slag it!"

Batman turned and headed straight for the sound, he could hear an army of Joker synthoids nearby so he knew that Joker knew about that sound as well.

He stopped in the shadows and couldn't believe his eyes when he saw what it was. It was a massive, black robotic suit, and it was launching huge explosive batarangs and was taking out about ten robots at a time!

"Terry, I know you're there, stop gawking and help me out…"

Terry couldn't believe it when he heard the old man speak into the radio again; his sweet growling voice was music to the young Bat's ears.

"Wayne! That giant suit is yours? You're here?"  
>"I'll explain once we get these robots off of my back! Now get over here!"<p>

Terry dashed out and launched a giant grappling hook, it wrapped around the majority of the synthoids and pulled them together into one group. Bruce took the cue and shot a large Bat Bomb at them, blowing them to kingdom come.

Once the dust settled, Terry walked up to the eight foot tall Iron Batman.

"That you old man?"

The Iron Batsuit's cockpit opened and lifted Bruce down. The original Dark Knight stood solemnly, leaning on his cane.

"Of course it is, only_ I_ could give _you_ a run for your money."  
>"I had a great teacher." Terry complimented, Bruce smirked.<p>

The Batmen walked down the street, Bruce explained to Terry about how crime had risen and that his disappearance was affecting everyone. He wanted to find Terry as soon as he disappeared, but he didn't trust anyone else to become Batman besides himself and Terry.

"So, who'd you get?"

The old man looked at Terry icily, "Dana."

Terry's eyes widened intensely, then he felt fear and rage at the same time.

"You… WHAT?"  
>"I did what I had to protect Gotham. Dana is everything you say she is and more, and with the new Batsuit I gave her… She may be able to top you."<p>

Terry was bewildered, he had only been teaching Dana defensive techniques, how could she be as good as him in that short of time?"

"Dana can handle herself, but if she does need help, I can contact her through this suit at any time."

Terry stopped, and Bruce did as well.

"Let me talk to her, I need to tell her something."

"Very well."

Bruce typed something into the Iron Batsuit's arm, "Alright, I patched your radio frequency to hers…"

Terry lifted his hand to his ear, and gulped.

"Dana?"

"Terry?"

"Dana, are you alright?"

"You worry too much McGinnis, I'm fine, I'm worried about you! Where are you?"

"Bruce said he told you…"

"Oh, right..."

"Look, about the secret… I'm sorry I didn't tell you…"

"I know, I know all about it Ter, and don't worry about it… All you wanted to do is protect me."

"And you wound up involved anyway…"

"Hey, this is MY choice. I'm not mad that you didn't tell me… However…"

"However?"  
>"We're going to have a serious talk about why Max knows and I didn't!"<p>

"I was afraid you'd say that."

"Anyway, did the old man find you yet?"

"I'm right here," Bruce interjected, "and get a move on. Waller's home isn't that far."

"Right, I'd better go."

"Wait!"

"Yes Terry?"

"In case we don't see each other again… I love you."

"I love you too Batman…"

"Heartwarming, now get on with it."

"You don't have a romantic bone in your body do you?"  
>"Romance is overrated, especially when a madman is threatening a country."<p>

"Right, Joker…"

Terry pointed out Joker's building, "He's there, probably just waiting for Batman to come so he can kill him twice…"  
>"Twice?" Bruce asked, and Terry looked at the ground.<p>

"Terry, there's something you're not telling me."

The young Batman looked at his elder sympathetically, and explained to him that this dimension… Was a world without Batman.

**(Did this at midnight last night! So, go easy with the REVIEWS! )**


	10. Part 10: Threats and Captives

_**Part 10**_

In a dark greenhouse in the slums of Gotham City, Pamela Isley sprayed a green mist from her fingertips to the only live plants within miles of it. She was interrupted by the sound of a slamming door behind her, she turned abruptly to see two (er, three) familiar faces standing in the doorway.

"Edward, Two-Face, how good of you to visit…" Pam said, though completely insincerely.

She was then met with a gun to her head, held by Harvey.

"Riddler and I know exactly what you've been doing Ivy, Black Ivy trees are hard to come by these days." Dent growled and Ivy scowled.

"I don't know what you're talking about Dent…" She lied through her teeth, Harvey cocked his pistol.

"Lets see if the coin thinks you're lying."  
>Two-Face took out his coin and laid it on his thumb, but Riddler grabbed his wrist and smirked. Two-face sneered and backed off.<p>

"Now now Miss Ivy, I think we can reach some sort of agreement."

Ivy raised an eyebrow, "What sort of agreement, Riddler?"

"Now, don't take us for fools Isley, we know that you've been helping the Red Hood with these new toys of his."

Riddler held the Poisoned Batarang in front of Poison Ivy, whose face grew calm.

"Supposing I have been, what do you want?"

"We want an audience with Mr. Hood, if you could arrange it; we'll do something for you." Riddler smirked and leaned on his gold cane.

"What could you possibly have that interests me?"

Pamela's eyes widened when she heard the sound of a gunshot hit the glass ceiling of the greenhouse. She turned and nearly screamed when she saw Two-Face holding a flamethrower and aiming for the largest tree in the building.

"What the hell are you doing!" She screamed.

Dent's sinister raspy laugh resonated through the building.

"Two choices Ivy, you get us a meeting with Hood, or…"  
>To Ivy's horror, Dent torched the tree, sparks flying and burning several other plants.<p>

"I come back and burn this entire place to cinders."

Poison Ivy fumed, the sneer on her face could kill a regular person, but Dent simply smirked in the smoke of the burning plants. The Riddler could take this no longer; he turned on the sprinklers on the ceiling and put the fire out. To Ivy's relief and Harvey's disappointment.

Ivy cursed under her breath, then straightened up and said, "Fine, I'll arrange it, just stay out of my garden, Dent."  
>Two-Face half smiled and Riddler frowned.<p>

"Good, goodbye Ms. Isley."

As Riddler and Two-Face left, Riddler was tempted to strike Dent on the head for being so forward.  
>"There was no need to be so aggressive, Dent."<p>

"I know, but you were boring me…" Harvey growled smugly, he then began flipping his coin as they walked.

"Boredom is no excuse for cruelty."  
>"There's something I never thought I'd hear you say."<p>

Riddler put his hand on his face, attempting poorly to shake off his emotions, knowing how hypocritical he was being.  
>"Meeting with this Red Hood will be our first step toward putting a stop to Joker's reign of stupidity."<p>

"You'd think he'd be less interested in ruling the city... Given his past, he never seemed to care much for power, he just liked making people's lives hell."  
>"It's a bit off for him isn't it? But saying 'power corrupts' is the same as saying 'water is wet'... It's a given. I theorize that the Clown's power changed him in some way... Though it doesn't matte rmuch, because he'll be a corpse soon anyway."<p>

"Then it will be a mad dash for the next place in power… The strongest alliance will succeed. Ours." Two-Face said confidently.

* * *

><p>Bruce and Terry walked down the empty street; it was now void of life other than the two batmen. Bruce's expression hadn't changed at all as Terry told him about all that had happened, the same cold expression he had been wearing since the day they met. Terry wouldn't be worried normally, but Bruce seemed distant as memories of that night filled his head.<p>

Terry paused for a moment, he had finished telling Bruce about how he found Tim and Raven and was about to go find Ace.

"Where are Tim and Raven?" He asked, to which Terry replied, "This way, I'll take you to 'em."

Terry took Bruce to that old diner, to a sight he hoped wasn't real. It was on fire.

"Slag." He said through gritted teeth. He and Bruce took off toward the wreckage.  
>"That must be it." Said the old man.<p>

Terry and Bruce put the fire out with dust-bombs, and then ventured into the diner, hoping to find some trace of Raven or Tim.

"I leave for ten minutes and they're attacked…"

He turned around and saw Iron Batman lifting a large bit of metal, tossing it aside.

"Terry." Bruce called; Terry ran over and saw that under the giant metal sheet lay an unconscious Raven.

"I take it this is Raven."

"Yeah..."  
>Iron Batman lifted Raven off the ground.<br>"There must be something here that we can use to find who did this." Bruce said, looking around. Terry turned on a heat-seeking vision function in his cowl to search for Tim. Nothing.

"Tim's gone, unbelievable."

Bruce took off with the jets on the feet of the Iron Batsuit, leaving Terry in a cloud of dust. Groaning, Batman followed him, he stopped when he saw that Bruce was hovering in the air, stunned. He followed his gaze and saw that Bruce was glaring at Joker's building.

"Wayne… We have to find Tim, if Joker has him…"  
>"I won't let that happen twice." Bruce said through gritted teeth, and looked at Terry.<p>

"Terry, we need to find everyone you've met here. Can you find them?"

Before Terry could answer. Raven's eyes opened and she said quietly, "I can… Go East."

The Batmen obeyed without questioning her, she seemed tired, but she was their only lead.

* * *

><p>"Okay, this isn't good…" Dana whispered to herself as a group of Jokerz advanced on her.<br>"Well well well, it looks like Batman took the night off and gave us this babe." Said Ghoul, grinning and laughing like crazy.

"Aww, we wanted to play with Batman!" The Dee Dee twins said, grinning.

Dana put her arms up in fists, prepared to fight, knowing she was way in over her head with this.

The Dee Dees jumped on her, and to Dana's surprise, she threw them off with relative ease.

Two bigger Jokerz grabbed her by the arms and tried to hold her down, and on impulse, Dana's legs shot up and kicked them both in the face, knocking them away and back flipping at the same time.

Dana landed and stood amazed at what the Batsuit was helping her do, she never felt so strong and fast in her life!

"This crazy chick ain't no slouch!" Said Ghoul, the grin on his face replaced by a frown and a scowl as he called the other Jokerz and left with them.

Dana grinned smugly, and then remembered why she was there, she rounded a corner and walked up the walk to the home of Amanda Waller, the ex-head of Project Cadmus, a government fund that intended to be a defense against the Justice League, should they ever turn rogue. After most of the Justice League Members were killed, Cadmus was shut down and Ms. Waller retired.

There was a lot of security in front of Waller's home, so Dana knew she had her work cut out getting inside the building. She flew to the roof and swung into an open window, landing quietly inside the place. She turned on the cloaking device in her suit and proceeded to avoid security guards and alarms.

The Batgirl finally made it into the largest room in the house; she was caught by surprise by the lights coming on behind her. She turned around, startled, to see an aging dark-skinned woman behind her.

"I was wondering when I'd get a visit from you… And that suit."

Dana could tell this was who she was sent to find, though she was older than she had expected.

"Now, come with me Miss Tan." Said Waller, leading Dana down the hall into an elevator.

"Excuse me, Ms. Waller? What exactly did Bruce tell you about me?" She asked, though there were many questions flying through the New Batgirl's head.

"Other than you're as green as a lime and in desperate need of training? Not much."

Dana blushed under her cowl, "Is that why he sent me to you?"

"Yes, but don't worry, with that suit, you won't need much training at all."

"What's so special about this suit anyway?"

Ms. Waller and Dana stood in the elevator and went down.

"I assume you know Commissioner Gordon? Well, Bruce, Barbara and I designed it ourselves; it has an internal computer that contains all of the martial arts skill that the Original Batman and Robin knew at their peak. We started it after the recent Joker incident."

"Why? Batman took care of the Joker didn't he?"  
>"Yes, but what would have happened if he hadn't? If Terry had lost and both he and Bruce were killed in that incident, then what would have happened? For all we know this city could be in ruins and everyone in it slaves to that madman. So Bruce contacted me and we decided to create a suit that could teach anyone to fight like Batman."<br>"So, this suit can turn anyone into a fighting machine?"

"You could say so, it reads your brainwaves through the cowl, and your assessment of the situation tells the suit how to move your body how to move. So really, it takes your instincts and combines them with Terry's abilities and strength."

"Schway." Said an excited Dana.

"Yes, it is 'Schway', but that doesn't mean you can stay un-trained. We have no idea how long Terry will stay in this other dimension, so you need to take his place until he returns."

"Right…" Dana walked out into the dark room, Ms. Waller turned on the light and Dana gasped at the massive laboratory she had hidden beneath her mansion.

"Now, for starters, we're going to see what you can do, minus the suit."

Said Waller, holding a remote and pressing a black button on it, instantly, Dana felt the Batsuit power down, no radio, no features, just her in a skin-tight black suit.

Amanda walked Batgirl to a hall in which there was a big, leather wall. "Alright Dana, I want you to kick the red spot on that wall as hard as you can, it will gauge what power you have without the suit's help."

Dana did as she was told, and kicked into the leather. At this point she noticed there was a big, whirring, light-blue screen just above the leather spot on the wall.

On this screen was a bunch of numbers that appeared to be changing and calculating Dana's kick.

"Well above average Miss Tan… Impressive, you're nearly as strong as Barbara was when she started out. Excellent." Said Waller with a smile, "Now, throw a punch."

Dana did so, and the same thing happened, though with relatively smaller numbers. Waller's smile faded slightly, "Your upper body strength is going to need some fine-tuning, though I do see a lot of potential in you Dana."

Dana, though thrilled that Ms. Waller approved of her, was a little confused. "Thanks, but Bruce said that I'd only be Batgirl until he brings Terry back. Why do I need to go through all of this if it's only temporary?"

Amanda smirked, "Who said it had to be temporary? Dana, if you ever want to truly be in McGinnis' life fully, you have to be part of both sides. He's a lot like Bruce was when he was younger, a loner by nature. If you want my opinion, he needs a partner other than just that girl behind the computer screen."  
>"Wait, you mean Max?" Dana raised an eyebrow, "I still have to give Terry a piece of my mind for not telling me when she found out."<p>

"That given, I think that whether Terry wants to admit it or not, he wants you to be there for him, in both his personal life and second life. He is simply afraid of putting you in danger."

Dana ran those thoughts through her mind, and grew a look of fortitude.

"Alright, teach me all you can."

* * *

><p>"Wakey, Wakey ladies!" The Joker grinned as he stared into three diamond-glass cells at three women inside them. On the furthest left was Batwoman, under her cowl she was a vengeful Barbara Gordon. On the far right was Selina Kyle, or Catwoman, who was the first to regain consciousness. And in the center was the unconscious Harley Quinn.<p>

"Joker! How did we-?" Selina started, but Joker put a finger up, "Ah, ah, ah! Mustn't lose control of our emotions Miss Kyle! I suppose you're all wondering how I got you here!"  
>"Duh..." Said the sarcastic Batwoman.<p>

The three girls were strapped into walls by steel cuffs; each of them had several cords binding them to the walls of their cells.

"My my, aren't we sassy tonight? You see ladies…" Joker started, "When I killed good ol' Bats, all of his little boy-blunders went a little kookoo in the head! The first one got all angry and depressed, ahaha! The last one just went quiet… Ooooh I hate that kid!" Joker exclaimed, clenching his fists. Calming down, he turned back to the Cat and Bat women, "Well, his second Robin went Ka-RAZY! Hahaahahaha! He heard Batsy kicked the bucket and rushed back here to see if it was true! Boy was he in for it!"  
>Barbara and Selina glared at the clown through the glass, they both wanted nothing more than to strangle that psycho.<p>

"So big bad Jason decided that he was gonna turn into the old me! The good old Red Hood!"

Both of the girl's eyes widened, and Joker continued, "He came to me a few days ago looking for a job with the most powerful man in Gotham City, and he got one! Unfortunately, he didn't quite get _all _of you…"

"So you hired Jason Todd to kidnap us and bring us to you? Is that it Joker?"

"Well of course! But like I said before, Hoody didn't quite get all of you, so I sent him packin' to who knows where!"

Barbara's emotions spurred out of control, she tried as hard as she could to break out of the cuffs keeping her bound.

"Ah, Ah, Ah! No escaping around here Batgirl!"

Joker pushed a button on the wall between the cells and an electric shock attacked Batwoman's body, if she had ever been closer to death, she didn't know it. The pain was excruciating. Joker laughed as she shrieked in pain, while Catwoman could only silently listen to what was happening, praying that somehow, she would figure a way to get out of there as quickly as godly possible.

_**[Well, that was a pain! Review, if it's confusing, I'll be more than happy to clarify ANYTHING for my readers.]**_


	11. Part 11: Tim and Jason

_**Part 11**_

Bruce and Terry flew to the East under the semi-conscious Raven's direction, "Raven, are you sure this is the direction Dick and the others are in?" Asked Bruce as the Batmen jetted across the sky.

"Yes… Dick and I… Have a mind bond… I can sense where he is." Raven answered weakly, Terry looked over and frowned. "Raven, who did this to you?"

"They're only physical injuries Terry… I'm only weak because I'm regaining my strength."

"You didn't answer his question." Bruce said, looking straight forward.

"It was a man, he moved just like Nightwing, only more aggressive… He wore a Red-…"

Before she could answer, she passed out, Bruce and Terry glanced at each other, and then continued flying in the direction she pointed them in.

After about half an hour of flying, they finally spotted something, it was Nightwing on the ground, in a fight with somebody else.

Bruce and Terry landed just out of sight, and observed the brawl between Nightwing and this other man.

Terry could see that in the moonlight, the mask that the other man wore was half bronze metal and the other half black. He also wore a black armored suit, lined with utilities; bombs, knives, etc. The younger Batman had no idea who it was, but Bruce did, and Iron Batman launched a cord between the clashing men.

"Deathstroke…" Said Bruce, stepping out into the street in his heavy Iron Armor.

"Deathstroke?" Asked Terry quietly so as not to disturb Raven, who was lying in his arms.

Nightwing and Deathstroke turned to see the massive Batman, and both froze in awe. As if they had seen a ghost.

"Batman?" Asked Deathstroke, his eyes widened.

"Bruce?" Asked Dick.

Iron Batman nodded and stepped out of the suit, Dick's eyes widened when he saw the aged Bruce, as did Slade's.

"Dick, I'm not the Bruce Wayne from this dimension, I'm from Terry's timeline."

"Of course… But…" Dick was overcome by emotion, which he held back; there stood Bruce Wayne, back from the dead. Terry stepped out into the light as well, "I guess I have some explaining to do."

"Yes, you do." Deathstroke said, reminding them he was still there.

"Slade, what are you doing here?" Inquired Bruce harshly, "If what Terry says is true, then I'd think Joker would have killed you by now."

"Yet here I stand today, interesting isn't it Batman? Truth be told, nearly all of those from your rogues gallery are now part of our own underground resistance. Ivy, Riddler, Clayface, Mad Hatter, Freeze, myself, Scarecrow, Penguin, and even Two-Face are part of it. I came here to inform Nightwing of us, so that by chance, we may form a temporary alliance to destroy Joker and his armies. Unfortunately, you didn't teach him much in the ways of 'self-control'." Deathstroke glared at Nightwing, who fumed at being humiliated by his long-time enemy.

Terry folded his arms, "Why should we trust you? Any of you? All of the people you just mentioned are either as insane or evil as Joker, they'd all take their first chance to shove a knife in Batman's back and you know it."

Bruce nodded in agreement, impressed by Terry's levelheadedness here.

Slade simply stood erect, "We all hate you, Batman, and therefore by extension, we hate you Terry, but at this point, getting Joker out of the way is priority-one. Whether you like it or not McGinnis, a group effort is the best way to get this job done and nothing can change that."

Terry, Bruce, and Dick all exchanged glances, and then returned their gaze to Deathstroke.

"Which of you is in charge of this 'resistance', Wilson?" Questioned Bruce.

"In reality, it is more of an Oligarchy, Penguin, Riddler, Two-Face and I are the heads of each of our own chapter of rebels.

"Bring them all to the center of crime alley in two hours."

"As you wish…"

Deathstroke turned to leave, but then snidely said, "It's good to have you back Batman."

"Get out of my sight." Bruce said coldly, and Slade left.

"There are so many things I wish I could ask you…" Said Dick as the group walked away from the scene.

"There's no time for chat, we need to find the rest of your groups."

"Right… I left Starfire, Changeling, and Cyborg in an old diner not far from here, and Raven…"  
>"Right here." Said Terry, showing Raven's sleeping body.<p>

"The Titans are here… This leaves Tim, Barbara, Selina, and Harley to find."

"Then let's get on with it, we're wasting time." Bruce said, turning and taking off.

"Some things never change." Nightwing said, smiling a little and spreading his blue hawk wings and taking off.

"Tell me about it." Terry replied, did the same, and followed.

"Nightwing… How did Deathstroke know who I was?" Terry asked as the two of them flew behind Bruce, who was holding the still-unconscious Raven.

"He's been following you, figuring you out like the creep he is, he knows more about you than most of us do. I ran into him less than an hour ago, he had lost your trail and I ambushed him."  
>"Sneak attacks… Times change McGinnis."<p>

It seemed like hours, but Dana knew that honing her mind and instincts like this was the best way to keep Gotham clean while Terry and Bruce were gone.

"Now, keep your eyes shut and strike." Said Waller. She stood behind a glass control room, watching as a blindfolded Batgirl had been battling several synthoids holographically cloaked with the skins of some of Batman's past enemies.

Dana's Batsuit heightened her sensed, this included her hearing. That sense led her to hearing a fake Bane coming up behind her. She swiftly dodged it, and in a rush of adrenaline, ran up his body and dug her heels into his collarbone. The synthoid shut down, but Dana was then ambushed by a large green hand. It sent her reeling.

"Don't let your defenses down at any moment Dana." Waller coached from her control room.

This went on for hours, until Dana had successfully defeated each of the fake Batman villains.

"Well done Miss Tan, well done." Said Waller, applauding slowly as she shut down the fight simulation.

"You think so? It wasn't Batman caliber…" Dana replied humbly.

"Nonsense, you have as much fight in you as any hero I ever met… and I was the government's liaison for the Justice League.

Dana smiled, and then heard from another part of the room more applause, slower than Amanda's.

Both Amanda and Dana turned and saw Commissioner Gordon there, smiling softly.

"Well done Dana, I underestimated you…"

"Barbara, good to see you again." Said Waller, smiling.

"It's been a while Amanda, I wasn't aware that you had a 'Batcave' of your own."

"I had this place built years ago, in case something untimely happened to Bruce and I could step in and keep Terry on as Batman."

Barbara narrowed her eyes.  
>"Didn't think you'd do something like that, with your past with the Justice League."<p>

Miss Waller returned the gaze.

"The world needs a Batman, whether you have the heart or the spine to admit that fact is your problem, not Terry's, Bruce's…" She turned to the New Batgirl.

"… Or Dana's"

Dana pulled her cowl off, it hung like a hood on her back.

"I never said I had a problem with it, just because I hung up the cape doesn't mean people have to see everything my way."

"Why are you here Commissioner Gordon?" Dana asked, folding her arms.

"I'm here to take you home Miss Tan, your father was in my office no less than an hour ago, frantic about you being missing. I'd tell you the whole story, but he blames your 'troublemaker' boyfriend. It's best I take you home for the night so you can explain to him why you were out until four in the morning."

Dana's eyes widened, with all of this excitement, she had forgotten how late it was when she left the Batcave to find Waller.

"Right… Thanks for everything Miss Waller."

"Anytime Dana, just remember what you've done tonight, you've got a will of iron and a heart of gold. Two things that you and Terry have in common."

"Yeah…" She smiled and went with the commissioner out to the police car.

"Here, you'll need these." Barbara tossed Dana back the clothes she had left in the batcave.

"Right, thanks." She had almost forgotten she was still wearing her Batsuit. As she changed, Barbara sighed.

"What's wrong Mrs. Gordon?"

"Nothing, just memories popping up here and there."

Dana realized that Barbara Gordon was Batgirl at one point; she smiled a little and said, "Do you have any advice for a new Batgirl?"

"Yes, hang up the suit as soon as Terry comes back…"

Dana's smile faded, "But, why?"

"Trust me Dana; you don't want to stay Batgirl when Batman returns."

"Why not?"

"Because Terry is a lot like Bruce, he's very focused on the mission, though not as obsessive. Your motivation now is to keep Gotham clear while Terry's gone… What happens when he comes back?"

Dana was silent, she didn't think about that.

"If you want to stay his girlfriend, hang up the cape before something happens to one of you because of the other's stupidity."

Barbara said sternly.

Dana was quiet until they reached her house.

There was a loud clang in the underground hallway of the Joker's building, Tim Drake had crashed through a vent in the ceiling of the basement and landed in the dimly-lit hallway. Guilty for not being able to save Raven from the crumbling building around them, he escaped to try and do what he should have done a long time ago… Take Joker down.

He silently dashed through the dark hall, careful not to alert any security systems, he was surprised and shocked when the lights flew on in a split second. He turned around and saw a man standing at the end of the hall. At first he thought it was Joker, but as his eyes adjusted to the light, he realized that this man was the one who attacked and burned down the diner. The Red Hood.

"Nice going kid, you broke into the great Joker's secret lair… what next?" Asked Red Hood sarcastically.

Tim was silent, watching his adversary intensely.

"What? Did the old man get to you? Funny, his 'strong-and-silent' thing never rubbed off on me… Then again, I didn't kill 'im."

Tim gritted his teeth, "What are you talking about?"

"What? Bruce never told you about me?"

Red hood reached over his mask and pulled it off, revealing a young man about Dick's age, wearing a Robin mask.

"Jason Todd." Tim said, raising his eyebrows.

"Ha, so he did tell you about me didn't he?"

"He said you were dead…"

"Amazing what a Lazarus pit can do for a dead guy huh?"

"I can't believe I'm surprised…"

"Look junior, if you're lookin' for Joker, you can forget about it, he's pent up in his room, and nobody can get in there."  
>"Watch me."<p>

Tim turned and walked toward the other door, then felt a sudden pain in his back, a burning sensation ran up his spine, and then he collapsed.

"For your own good kid, ya shouldn't cross me."

Jason smirked; he had thrown a dark red birdarang into Tim's back, which would paralyze him for a few minutes.

Jason stepped forward to take Tim away, then he heard footsteps behind him, he quickly turned around and raised a birdarang. What he saw made him smile a bit, "Ivy, I was wondering when you'd come see me again."

Poison Ivy was standing in the hall behind him, though she didn't return his pleased expression.  
>"Jason, I thought we had a deal.<p>

"We still do, you poison my birdarangs, and I rescue the girls."

"Then why the hell haven't you done it yet?" Ivy snarled.

"Because Black Robin here distracted me." Jason said sternly, pointing to the collapsed Tim behind him. Ivy sighed, "I came because I wanted to tell you that Harvey and Edward want an audience with you…"

"Who and who?" Jason asked.

"Two-Face and Riddler." Pam sighed.

Jason's eyes narrowed, "Why would I want to talk to them?"

"Because if you _don't, _you won't be getting any more poison birdarangs, they'll burn down the greenhouse!"

The Red Hood moved to lift his hood over his face, but before he did, he turned to her. "Alright Ivy, I'll go, first I'll save Harley and the others, then I'll find Dent and Nigma."

Ivy's facial expression changed from her fury and frustration to relief.

"I'm so sorry I'm this worked up…"  
>"Don't worry, it'll be fine Pam, hopefully Two-Face, Riddler, and I can come to an understanding and I can help them take the clown down."<p>

Ivy leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, "Thank you Jason…"

"What, just the cheek? Breaking into a prison cell isn't as easy as it sounds babe."

Ivy smirked, then pulled him into a deeper kiss.

"There, think you can run on that?"

Jason felt his endorphin and adrenaline glands working fast from the strength-enhancing herb on Ivy's lips.

"You bet… Do me a favor and take little Black Robin away from this place, he'll be paralyzed for a bit."

"Ugh, fine."

Jason pulled his Red Hood back on, and left down the hall, while Ivy picked up Tim and left the way she came.

She smirked to herself, though she couldn't fathom why. She had a massive hatred for all men on this Earth, but something about Jason… Crazy as it seemed, attracted her. She hated herself for feeling this and tried her hardest to hate him as well, but she couldn't bring herself to it.

"Damn." She thought.

Hanging in their prison cells, Harley, Barbara, and Selina all hung by their limbs praying for a miracle. They heard a loud clang outside their cells, Harley was the first to see the person walking in. "Hey! It's the Red Hood!" She yelled. Jason put two fingers to his lips as he crept over to the control box for the cell block.

The girls watched as the Red Hood typed in a code that undid their ankle and arm cuffs. They fell out of their prison locks at the same time, rolling out toward their rescuer.

"Thanks for the assist, Red." Said Catwoman, smirking.

"Not a problem, just a favor for a friend. You should probably know that I was the one who put you three here."

All three women scowled and advanced on him.  
>"Why the change of heart?" Questioned Batwoman, gritting her teeth.<p>

"What? Don't remember me Barb?" Jason said, feigning hurt.

"Remember?"

Jason pulled his Red Hood off, revealing his face to them.  
>"Jason Todd?" They all said at once, while he just smirked.<p>

"Now you remember me."

Jason, Selina, Harley, and Barbara all snuck out of Joker's building, once they were far enough away from it, they regrouped in the middle of the old city park.

"Alright Jason, what's your story? Why did you take us captive under Joker's orders, then rescue us under someone else's?" Barbara inquired.

"Long story short, I got back here and there was no Batman, so I became a mercenary, doing jobs for anyone who could pay."

"So you went to Joker?" Selina asked, putting her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, he's the most powerful guy around, so he could pay me with protection."  
>"So why'd ya leave the clown?" Asked Harley, shifting her weight to her other hip.<br>"Cause he's nuts."

"Ah."

"Right."  
>"Duh…"<p>

"So I took a job from Poison Ivy to get you three out as a favor…"

"Aww, good ol' Red's still lookin' out for me!"

Barbara raised an eyebrow, "So what do you get for saving us?"  
>"Special weapons." Jason smirked, whipping out a green birdarang.<p>

"This little number is coated with a toxin that will slowly and painfully kill any target it hits."  
>Barbara grimaced, Selina smirked, and Harley grinned.<p>

"Ya ever gonna use it Hoody?" Harley asked getting a closer look at the weapon.

"Maybe."

Jason turned to leave, "Where are you going? We're not done here!" Batwoman yelled after him.

"Yeah we are, besides, I have to talk to two men about a clown." Jason launched a grappling hook to a building and swung away, leaving the girls on their own.

"I don't trust him."  
>"You don't trust anyone anymore Barb."<p>

"Yeah, ya seriously need ta lighten up!"

_**[Whadaya think? Seriously, read and review!]**_


	12. Part 12: Batgirl and Max

_**Part 12**_

"Jason Todd, I presume." Edward Nigma smirked as The Red Hood walked into the old room that he and Two-Face had set up a rendezvous with the notorious mercenary.

"Riddler, you always were the smartest bad guy Bruce and I ever went up against, guess I shoulda figured that you'd know who I am by now."

"Flattery will get you nowhere boy, now, to the business at hand…"  
>"Joker; we want weaknesses, plans, whatever it takes to take the clown down." Two-Face growled, leaning forward in his seat.<p>

Jason smirked and sat in front of the two villains, propping his feet up on the table between them.

"Whoa there Harv, what's in it for me if I spill the Joker's beans?"

In a flash, Two-Face had Jason held by the scruff of the neck, "How about you keep your face pretty boy?"

"I'd still be hotter than you Harv." Jason smirked. Dent drew his gun at this, but was stopped by Riddler.

"Let us act as if we are older than Toddlers. Now, Jason, you and I both know that you aren't as aloof as you act. You miss Bruce, and you want revenge, I can sense it…"  
>Riddler smiled smugly as Jason scowled.<p>

"What are you saying?"

"If you help us to take this 'Clown Prince of Crime' back off of his throne… You can have the honor of taking him out of the picture… Permanently."

Jason's eyebrows rose, "What makes you think I want Joker dead?"  
>"Don't kid yourself Jason, you want him dead as much as Batman did. The main difference is…" Riddler rose slightly from his chair and stared Jason straight in the eyes.<p>

"… You'll do it."

Jason scowled further, then looked back at Nigma.

"I will."

"Excellent! Now, about Joker's secret weapon…"

"Ace." Hood answered coldly.

"What?"

"I was snooping though Joker's rooms, I found Ace of Clubs of the Royal Flush Gang locked up in a giant tube; that tube is connected to a gun in Joker's office… I watched him take Superman, The Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman down… Driven insane by psychic waves emitted from Ace's powers."

"Just like him to do what he wants through another without conscience… I'd be impressed if I didn't hate him so much."

"Excellent, now we know what we're up against." Riddler stood up and walked toward a door in the back of the room.

"We'll be in touch."

Dana walked into her house after Commissioner Gordon dropped her off, hoping and praying her parents weren't awake, she exhaled with relief when she wasn't instantly berated by her father upon walking through the door. Her relief wouldn't last long, because when she turned the light on, she saw that her living room was torn apart. It looked as if a bomb had gone off. She gasped, and dared to think the worst had happened.

"Mom? Dad?" She called into the empty house, she searched all around, but only to find no one home… Increasing her worry level to 11.

Reacting on instinct, Dana threw on her Batsuit again, and channeled into the radio, "Mr. Wayne! Terry! Answer me!"

In the Gotham of the past, Bruce and Terry received Dana's call, Terry answered first, "Dana! What's the matter?"  
>"Terry, my parents! They're gone! And-."<p>

Bruce interrupted, "Dana, calm down, what's happening?"

Dana composed herself, took a deep breath and spoke.

"Okay, I spent too long at Mrs. Waller's, and when I got home, the house was slagged and my parents are gone… I'm scared…"

"Do you have any idea who could have done this? A family enemy?" Bruce asked, scowling through his metal cowl.

"No one I know of!"

The Batmen and Nightwing landed on the ground nearby the old Gotham City park.

Terry rolled his eyes and thought, "As if we didn't have enough going on here, now we have to worry about Dana?" He could tell that Bruce was thinking about the same thing, when he heard sounds in a nearby clearing.

"Bruce, try and keep Dana calm, I have something to investigate."

"Don't wander too far McGinnis…" Bruce said.  
>"We don't want to lose two Batmen after we just got one back." Said Dick, still holding Raven (Who was still unconscious.).<p>

The Tomorrow Knight ran off toward the talking, switching on his cloaking device. As he neared it, he recognized the voices, it was Harley, Selina, and Barbara.

Terry made himself known, "Girls!" He called to them.

They reacted, Barbara drawing batarangs, Harley raised razor-edged playing cards, and Catwoman just turned, folding her arms.

"Hey! Calm down!" Batman turned his cloaking device off, and the two younger women sighed in relief.

"We've been looking all over for you three!" Terry exclaimed, walking closer to them.

"Good to see a friendly face." Barbara said.

"Phew, it's just bat-hottie!" Harley grinned.

"'We'? Who else is with you Terry?" Catwoman said, leading the other two closer to Terry.

"Three others, we're trying to find everyone we can so we can meet with some people over in crime alley."  
>"People? Who might they be?" Barbara inquired.<p>

"Basically everyone who isn't Joker."

"Mmm, perfect. I've wanted to pay the old villain gang a visit." Catwoman purred.

"Dana, you're absolutely certain that your family has no enemies?" Bruce requested from Dana over the radio.

"Positive…"  
>"Then we can assume there's someone who knows who you are already."<p>

"Oh god…" Dana was close to tears, she hadn't been Batgirl for a day and she already let her identity slip.

"Calm down Dana, your parents aren't dead… Yet. Though all this is leading me to wonder if their disappearance is connected to this dimension somehow."  
>"Bruce, even to a newbie, that sounds a little far-fetched." Said Dick, helping the conscious Raven to her feet.<p>

"That may be, but even the most far-fetched of options are still options."

At that moment, Terry and the three girls walked back onto the scene.

"Hey guys, look who I found!"

"Was wondering where you three ended up." Nightwing smirked.

"Nice to see you too Nightie!" Harley said excitedly, then paused and looked at the giant metal Batsuit behind Nightwing.

"Who's the metal guy?"

The three girls wandered onto the scene.

"Barbara, Harley… Selina… it's good to see you three again." Said Bruce, sliding the metal cowl from his face.

Upon seeing Bruce's aged face, all three girls' hearts skipped a beat. Even 40 years older, Bruce's stoic expression lingered, instantly recognizable to anyone who had ever been in the company of the original Batman.

"Bruce?" Asked Barbara nervously at the sight of her deceased mentor, "It can't be…"

"Yes, and it can, reunions can continue later, we need to find a place of residence, we're all tired, and trying to coordinate a group of seven is more trouble than it's worth." Bruce declared, returning his metallic cowl to its place on his face, turning and motioning for the others to follow him.

"He's right, come on." Terry nodded, following Bruce as the others did.

Once they were moving in a steady direction, Bruce re-tuned into his radio to continue his conversation with Dana.  
>"Dana, you need to go to Maxine Gibson's home, and tell her everything about this little endeavor." Bruce uttered into the speaker. Terry butted in, "What? So Max can help Dana, but you don't approve of her helping me?"<br>"Not now!" Bruce barked, startled, Terry got off the frequency irritably.

"Alright, I have some questions to ask her anyway… Thanks Bruce." She said, turning the radio off.

Max paced around her living room, hoping and praying that Terry was going to contact her, she sighed and slouched into her couch. She felt a breeze from the open window behind her and turned to close it, then was met with a shock that knocked her off her seat and onto the rug.

"Terry?" She asked, getting up at the sight of the black, pointy-eared figure in her living room.

"Max, it's me!" Said Batgirl, stepping into the light and taking her cowl off.

"Dana? What are you-? How did-? Where did you get-?" Max paused, "Girl, you got some explaining to do!"

Dana put her hands on her hips, "All I wanna know is; how could you have mistaken me for Terry!"

"It's dark, the pointy ears, and you're wearing heels!" Max said, smiling a little.

"True, but I don't think Terry has these!" She said, motioning toward her breasts.

Max laughed, and Dana laughed with her. For a moment, she had forgotten that her parents were missing and Terry was in another dimension… She supposed she just felt too comfortable speaking to Max.

"Alright Dana, enough jokes, how did you find out about Ter's secret? And more importantly, where'd you get the Batsuit?"

Dana sighed and began to explain the whole story to her friend.

After a few hours, Bruce, Terry, Dick, Selina, Barbara, Rachel, and Harley had found a safe house on the other side of town.

Once they had all settled in, they separated to rest before their meeting with the other resistance.

Terry sat on a chair in the underground room, he closed his eyes and thought about if he'll ever get home…

"Hey kid, you alright?"

Terry snapped back to reality, he looked up and saw the tall, hourglass figure of Catwoman standing in front of him.

"I'm alright…" Terry said, Selina sat next to him, "Good." She said.

"I can see why he keeps a picture of you." Terry said leaning back.

"Who?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Bruce." He said, pointing to the old man, who had stepped out of his Batsuit.

"Oh really?" She smirked, looking him over.

"Yeah, I see 'em on his computer back home."

The two of them just looked on at Bruce, who was standing alone, inspecting his suit.

"He looks in pretty good shape, how old is he in your dimension?"

"Late 70's, early 80's… I never really asked."

"You know Terry, you do look an awful lot like he did, and you're almost as good a fighter. You two related?"  
>Terry raised an eyebrow, "Nah, if we were related, I'd have to be his son… and I KNOW that's not true."<p>

"Just sayin' kiddo, now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to re-introduce my self to tall-old-and handsome over there." She grinned, and he mirrored it, watching her leave… Or more specifically, following his teenager instincts, watched her butt leave.

Bruce pushed a button on the arm of his metal suit, it dispensed a bottle with several small, white pills in it. He opened it and took one of the pills, then returned the bottle to its place. He turned around to see Selina standing behind him, he was still taller than she was.

"What are those for?" She asked, pointing to the pill bottle.

"My heart." Bruce muttered, walking past her toward a window-well.

"Don't act like you aren't happy to see me, Bruce. Young Bat over there tells me you keep a picture of me."

Bruce closed his eyes, "I keep several pictures, not just of you."  
>"Oh… Why?"<br>"They're reminders of all I had missed over the years… Things I don't want Terry to miss…"

"You act like you're his father." Selina joked, circling around the old man. Bruce's eyes flickered for a moment, hinting that he knew something that no one else did.

Selina's mood went from flirty to concern, "Bruce… Is there something you haven't told the boy?"  
>Bruce straightened up, "I see no reason to tell you… What do you care?"<p>

Selina put her hands on her hips, "I care!"

"It doesn't matter, as soon as this ordeal is over, Terry and I will bother your dimension no longer."

Selina grabbed Bruce's hand, "Bruce Wayne… I haven't seen your face in two years, seeing you now, even forty years older, is far from a bother…"

Her face was incredibly close to his, though his expression remained the unyielding face of Batman, his eyes stared back into hers, then both sets of eyes closed as Selina pulled him into a kiss.

Once they pulled away, "All these years and you've still got it…" She grinned, her hand on his face. He looked back, "Some talents, you never lose."

Terry watched the scene from afar, secretly grinning to himself at how even an 80-year-old Batman had more game than he did. He then returned to his own train of thought, wondering if Dana and Max were alright, and if he would ever see them again.

Nightwing walked up to him, and leaned on his chair. "Even 80 years old, Bruce still has it… How does he do it?" He asked, half-joking.

"You're in an awfully good mood."  
>"Don't see a reason not to be!"<p>

Terry kept looking on, while Nightwing sat next to him.

"It's just great to see good ol' Bruce again…"  
>"I see him every day, guess I kinda take him for granted."<br>Dick folded his hands. "Fierce exterior aside, he's a great man… One of the greatest men that ever lived."  
>"Yeah…"<br>"I don't know how a world could go on without him."

"Or someone like him."

"Right…" Dick looked away, "We still need to find Starfire, Cyborg, and Changeling… Raven and I are going to find them, you in?"  
>"Sure, if it gets me some exercise." Terry pulled his cowl on and stood up, following Nightwing to the door where Raven waited. Then he felt a large, heavy hand on his shoulder, he turned to see the glare of Bruce.<br>"Where exactly do you three think you're going?"  
>"There are three more of us Bruce, we need to find them." Dick said while Raven nodded.<p>

"Fine, but you have to be back in an hour, I contacted Deathstroke again and told him where we were…"  
>"Got it."<p>

_**[Finished this at 12:05 AM guys, reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated! Note: All loose ends WILL be tied up, believe me, this story is FAR from over.]**_


	13. Part 13: You'd Be Lost Without Me

_**Part 13**_

"Another dimension?!" Max exclaimed as Dana finished explaining the situation to her.

"Yeah, Mr. Wayne and Terry are both there, I dunno what they're up to, but I hope they come back soon."  
>"Haha, why? As long as they're gone, you get to keep the suit!" Max grinned and took another look over the sleek skintight Batsuit.<p>

"I know, but…"  
>"You're worried about Terry… Dana, let me tell you now, you got nothin' to worry about. Ter can handle himself, heck, he even took out the Joker when he came back!"<p>

Dana sighed; she knew her friend was right, if anyone could find a way back to their home dimension, it was Batman. Even so, she couldn't help but get this worried feeling.

"Max, Mr. Wayne said you could help me…"

"Right, your folks, the Commish said your dad was in her office an hour ago right?"

"She did say that, but neither of my folks were home when she dropped me off."

"I know, I know, but if what she said was true, then they were kidnapped in a hurry…"  
>Dana's eyes lit up, "Which means they must have left clues by accident!"<p>

"Perfect! Lets get moving…" Max stood up, and both girls walked toward the door.

"Wait!" Dana said, grabbing Max's arm.  
>"What?" She said, turning around.<p>

"What if we run into any of Batman's enemies? I won't have any problems, but you…"  
>"Ugh, right, the whole 'secret identity' thing."<p>

Dana put her hand on her chin, then smiled. "Think Mr. Wayne would mind if we snuck into the Batcave?"  
>Max grinned ear to ear, "Nope, not at all!" She lied, seizing the chance to <em>finally<em> see the Batcave.

* * *

><p>Batgirl donned her cowl and put Max on her back, jumping out the window. Max was about to scream, when the two purple wings sprung from Dana's back and they took off at high speed.<p>

Batgirl Beyond and Max made it to Wayne manor and found the Batcave behind the old grandfather clock, just as Bruce showed Dana earlier.

"Alright, we go in and look for any suit we can possibly find, preferably a Batsuit, but I can live with a Robin suit."  
>"You do look good in red!"<p>

"Don't push it Dana."

The two girls made their way to the Bat computer, Max sat down in front of it, one look at her face and Dana could tell one thing; Max was having a computer-nerd-gasm.

"Oh my god, the fastest processor ever conceived by any programmer in the history of the world, right in front of me!" She contained her extreme excitement at this, or at least, attempted not to scream.

"I take it you'd like to-?"  
>"YES!"<br>Dana Giggled at Max's response, the two decided that Max was going to do what Wayne did for Terry. Max was the mind, Dana the body.

* * *

><p>Terry and Dick returned with the Titans to the old safe house where everyone else was. He pulled off his cowl and walked up to Bruce, "Bruce, this is…"<p>

"Starfire, Cyborg, and The Changeling…" He answered, as Terry thought about how much he hated it when Bruce was right about everything.

"Looks like we're all here, let's get a move on before the others change their minds and try to kill us." Catwoman said, walking to the door, Iron Batman put his hand on her shoulder.

"Selina, it's best that just Terry and I go."

The entire throng of heroes began mumbling to themselves at Wayne's idea.

"Bruce, you're kidding, right?" Selina inquired, shifting her weight to her thigh.

"No, I'm not." Bruce said, Terry walking up behind him.

"Terry, try to talk some sense into him-." Barbara said, pulling her cowl off.

"Barbara, how long have you known him? I don't think anyone could talk him out of changing his mind."

Barb wanted to argue, but deep down she knew he was right, Bruce was more stubborn now than he was when he was young, and that's saying something.

Though some arguments occurred, particularly between Dick and Bruce, they eventually came to the agreement that only the Batmen should meet with the former villains.

As Bruce and Terry exited the building, Terry piped up with a question.

"Bruce, what the slag?"  
>"What?"<p>

"Why did you come? You know your heart can't take the stress of being Batman, why didn't you just radio me?"

Bruce didn't answer, continuing walking toward their rendezvous point. Terry stopped, and folded his arms.

"Damn it Wayne, we're not going anywhere until you answer me!" He declared, scowling through his cowl. Bruce just kept walking, "Fine, I'll go on my own."

Terry gritted his teeth at Bruce's hard head.

Bruce continued walking until he felt a hard 'klang' against his back, it didn't hurt, but it shook him. He turned around, looking back at Terry, who had his batarang launcher armed.

"Tell me, NOW."

"You wouldn't understand, now come on or get lost McGinnis."  
>Terry lost it.<p>

"You know, I've been really forgiving of your attitude up till now, your sarcasm, bitterness, god-complex, paranoia, everything! But you know what? I'm done! Call me crazy, but I think everyone in that building back there looks up to you! Hell, they worship you! And you still just slam a door in their faces? No, Wayne, you're telling me why you want us solo on this one, why you even came at all, and why you thought it was a good idea to put Dana in a suit!"

The two Batmen just stared at each other for a moment, then Bruce looked Terry right in the eye, "I want us solo on this because I don't want anyone dying before their time. I came because I wanted to keep you and the rest of these people from dying at the hands of the Joker."  
>"And why did you put Dana in the suit?"<p>

"Because she's as strong and good of a person as you are, the most trustworthy human being in Gotham city, the only suitable replacement for you in absence."

Terry gritted his teeth, then calmed himself, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have yelled."

"I was wondering why you didn't sooner…"

"Hmm?" Terry was surprised at his mentor.

"You had every right and reason to be angry, but you held it in out of respect… I'm proud of it."

Terry couldn't help but smile as they continued walking.

A large group of people walked down crime alley, some of them disfigured monsters, some powerful men. All of them led by a tall red-haired man in a green suit and purple mask. The Riddler.

"You really think the bat's back from the dead?" Asked the Penguin, a short, round, pointy-nosed man in a black tuxedo. Riddler replied, "Not sure of that, but we'll find out soon, won't we Mr. Cobblepot?"

"And if he is?" Asked Basil Karlo, the creature known as Clayface.

"Then things will get very interesting indeed, you're sure it was him Slade?" Riddler turned to the semi-dark masked man walking near to Clayface.

"Certain." He replied coldly.

It was at this point that the villains-turned-resistance saw two black figures with pointed 'ears' on their heads walking toward them. They stopped.

Bruce and Terry were only a few yards away from them when they stopped.

"Batman, is that really you?" Asked the Riddler, stepping forward toward the large, metal man that stood before the crowd of people, Bruce then stepped forward.

"Yes, Nigma… it's me."

"Batman!" Yelled a woman's voice from behind the crowd, it was Poison Ivy.

"Pamela."

She was holding something, Terry ran forward and saw that it was an unmoving, unconscious Tim Drake.

"Robin!" He exclaimed, "What did you do to him Ivy?" Terry gritted his teeth and got 'all up in Ivy's face'

"For your information Brat-man, I saved his ass when he went into the Joker's building."

"I assume Joker has let my identity go viral?" Bruce said as Terry took Tim from Ivy.

"Yes, Bruce." Harvey said from Riddler's side.

Bruce scowled as two-face walked up, then chose to exit his suit, as he saw no need to hide his identity from those who knew it already.

Two-Face stepped forward. "You're so..."

"Old? Fifty years does that to a person... Glad to see you let the city go to hell without me, Harvey."

Two-Face was going to retort, but held his tongue out of respect for his past friendship with Bruce Wayne.

"Alright, Dark Knight... What's the plan, I don't know about you and your, 'so-called' Heroes, but we, the Criminal Underworld of Gotham are just about sick of having to check every corner in fear of a cyanide pie in the face or an explosive wedgie from Joker's little robots.

"You don't do your research very well, do you Nigma?"  
>Bruce barked, "Have you gotten a good look at the robots Joker's been using?"<br>"I don't know what you're-..."

"I did." Said Deathstroke, he stepped forward and continued, "The robots aren't new. And they're not Lexcorp as the clown would like us to believe."

Bruce followed up, "They're actually fairly old... Nearly a century."

Terry folded his arms, confused as to what Batman was getting at, but impressed as usual that he could catch this kind of detail.

"The robots were initially designed as the mechanical guardians of an old foe of mine... Ra's Al Ghul."

Riddler hit himself in the face, "OF COURSE!" He exclaimed, "How did I not see it sooner?!"

"See what?" Asked the young Batman. Bruce stared down the crowd. "The Joker isn't really the one behind this."

The entire crowd began to murmur, as did Terry.

"What are you talking about? Of course it's him, we saw him do it, he killed you remember?"  
>"He may have killed me, taken Robin as his own, and defeated the league using Ace... But there's no way Joker would let anyone else help in his conquering and chaos. Not to mention that as long as I've known him, the Joker has been a psychotic, monstrous, unrepentant, wise-cracking, genius pile of filth... But never a megalomaniac."<br>Riddler stepped up, "Of course not, we've all met the clown! All he ever wanted to do was create chaos, and make your life a living hell."

"He was good at it too." Bruce retorted, "But what do you think he did after he managed to kill me? Not take over Gotham and half the world. No, the Joker, the REAL Joker wouldn't know what to do... I've seen what would happen to the Joker in a world without Batman."  
>"And?" Terry asked, the entire crowd leaned in.<br>"The Joker would kill himself. And, he did. After hearing what happened from Batgirl, it was easy to piece together. After Robin and Harley betrayed him, Joker finally let his insanity get the better of him. He killed himself, even if I don't know how. However, there was someone waiting in the wings. Someone ready to take his work and finish it how they saw fit."

"Who?"

"The man who built those robots.

Ra's Al Ghul."

Line Break

* * *

><p><strong>OY... Talk about writer's block, sorry about the intense wait guys! It's a long story, which I will tell at the end of next week's chapter! <strong>

**If you only knew what I had planned! You'd just DIE!**


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